God Save the King
by Morrigana
Summary: Sequel to Softly As I Leave You and set 16 years later. As the worst war the Underground has ever seen comes to an end, Jareth begins the task of picking up the pieces of his world and his life. JS Chapter 34 up
1. Prologue

A/N: Hi folks! This is a sequel to Softly As I Leave You, which was supposed to be a one shotter. But of course, me being me, I couldn't leave it alone. If you haven't read the above, I strongly suggest you do. I hope you enjoy this story, and please, as always, read and review.

Disclaimer: I don't own Jareth or Sarah or the Labyrinth.

Dripping with sweat, his armor caked in blood and gore, Jareth dropped his sword and fell to his knees, unable to stand any longer. When had he last slept? When had he last bathed? When had he last eaten a bite or drank anything more than the swill his goblin stewards had managed to bring to him as he fought?

Suddenly unable to breath, Jareth desperately fought with the clasps that held his breast piece in place. It should not have been so difficult, but his fingers were numb and swollen and his brain addled. His helmet had long since been shattered by a lucky blow, and his hair stuck to his face in thick clots of blood and sweat. A deep gash glared angrily from his right cheek. He knew he should have it seen to before it scarred, but he just didn't have the energy to find the healer.

Finally working off the breast plate, Jareth heaved a long shuddering breath, and then gagged as the smell of death filled his nostrils. Finally giving up all pretense of having an ounce of strength left, he collapsed to the ground, his eyes closed, listening to the screams of the dying all around him. How many on this field had been slain by his own sword? How much blood was on his hands? Too much, he knew, but it was a small matter now.

The war had been long and bloody, but now it was over. Both sides had risen at dawn this morning and donned their armor, knowing that this would be the last battle. The world as all had known it was no more. The High Council of Elders was gone, the power of the Fae ruling class had come to an end, and as the dust settled there was only one man left with enough strength to rebuild the underground.

If he could find the strength to stand up again.

How had this all started? He couldn't really remember. No one could. Thirteen years may as well have been thirteen hundred. His family and the rest of the Fae Council had always had its differences. The rulers of the Labyrinth were considered black sheep of Fae society, somehow less civilized than the rest. As a result, communications between the two parties had always been kept at a minimum, reserved for matters of state and special occasions.

This arrangement had always suited Jareth just fine, as it had every Goblin King before him. His disdain for the Fae Court was legendary, and matched only by his disgust of their small minded bigotry. It would not have been tolerated except that he served a purpose. Without the Goblin King, who would carry out his duties? It was widely known that no other position within the Fae hierarchy demanded as much direct contact with humans as did that of the King of the Goblins, Granter of Wishes, Keeper of Dreams. It was a duty that any civilized Fae would find unbearable. In other words, it was a job fit only for the Baaleron Dynasty, and Jareth Baaleron took his duties very seriously. Therefore, his impudence, and that of his forebears, had been tolerated by the Fae Council.

Until, of course, that scheming woman had come along. Her name was Allyndriel, and she was the consort to the High King. Her only love was power, and her only joy was the acquisition of it. "The Labyrinth," she had whispered into the High King's ear. "The Labyrinth holds more power than all other Fae kingdoms combined. How can we leave it in the hands of that barbarian? It's only a matter of time before he uses it against you, my love."

"But Jareth is strong and defiant." The High King had answered uneasily. Even he realized that this woman had a power over him that was inexplicable. "He will not hand over the Labyrinth simply because I demand it of him. There would be a war."

"So let it come." Allyndriel purred, "Jareth is weaker than you think. It has not been so long ago that he allowed a mortal girl, a mere child, to defeat him. Attack him now, my lord. His walls will crumble and the Labyrinth will be yours. Your power will be unmatched by any of the Kings who came before."

Her words had been seductive, alluring. He had believed her, truly believed that he could easily defeat the Goblin King. In her arrogant stupidity she had believed as well. But things had not gone as they had planned.

Jareth had more allies than even he had suspected. The armies of the Troll kingdom had swiftly come to his aid. Soon after Saren, the Queen of the Elves, had arrived to fight at his side. Even the Labyrinth had fought for its master, its only friend. Together with the Goblin army they had defended the Goblin Kingdom and pushed back the invaders.

Wave after wave of Fae Elite had marched on the Goblin City, only to find their death in the shadow of the Labyrinth's walls. Still, they kept coming. Fueled by Allyndriel's wicked words, the High King's plans to wrest the Labyrinth from Jareth's grasp had become an obsession, and the obsession had turned to madness. Despite years of defeat, he had not given up. He sent his armies in and watched as every Fae King and Lord in the underground was slain by his folly. He pressed on until today he himself had fallen in the field of battle, cut down by Jareth's own sword. It was the killing blow that had ended the war.

It was all over now. Jareth had not only successfully defended his own kingdom, but had won the right to claim the throne of the High King of the Underground. Even now he could hear the cheers rising up from the gates of the Labyrinth as those loyal to him celebrated their victory. It was a new dawn in the Underground. Things would never be the same again, and most still standing would welcome the change.

But the price had not been cheap. The Fae as a race had suffered a terrible blow. And Jareth's personal losses had also been numerous. Countless friends, advisors, and allies had fallen over the years. Too many to count, their names and faces a dizzying blur of sorrow. Even his only brother, his most trusted confidant, had been taken from him during the fifth year of the war.

There was no joy in the Goblin King's heart, no shouts of celebration on his lips. It was a hollow victory, and one he could only savor bitterly. Wearily, Jareth pulled himself up from the ground. He took one last moment to survey the destruction around him, a single tear shining on his cheek for those who had died that day on both sides. Feeling old for the first time in his many long years, he turned back towards his castle. There was a great deal of work to be done if his world was to be rebuilt.

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Sarah cringed as the blaring music started again from the upstairs bedroom. Her fists clenched at her side, she stormed up the staircase and stopped short at the black papered door and the sign that warned _Angry Teenagers Only, Parents Keep Out_. She growled, not so much upset at the sign, but over the way the _s_ in _Parents_ had been crossed out, and a skull and crossbones drawn over the now singular word. It seemed her son delighted in torturing her.

"Ryan!" she shouted, banging on the closed door, "Ryan Jareth Williams you get out here this instant!" The door was flung open almost instantly, and her sixteen year old pain in the ass glared at her from the other side.

"What?" he demanded, his ice blue eyes staring at her coldly, his face haughty and arrogant. For just a moment the world stopped, and she was struck once again by how much he looked like his father. Though they had never met they had so many of the same features, same mannerisms, even to some extent the same tastes. Ryan's current outfit consisted of tight black jeans, a black tee shirt covered in holes and, oddly, safety pins, black combat boots, and black leather gloves with the fingers cut out. Sarah knew that if her son had been going out he would first put on his flowing black overcoat.

Nothing he wore was anything his father would ever have been caught dead in, to be sure, but eerily similar even so. Then there was the hair. Long and blond and spiked in some places, with streaks of blue and red and purple. It was almost as though he had found a picture of Jareth somewhere and had tried his best to copy it. He face was fair and perfect, his features angular and aristocratic. Even his voice was rich and resonating and oh so like his fathers on the few occasions he chose to speak to her civilly. This was obviously not one of those times.

"Are you planning to stare at me all day or was there something you wanted?" he asked.

Sarah shook herself out of her thoughts and back into the situation at hand. "I thought I told you to turn that music off and do your homework." She said.

"And I thought I told you I can't do my homework without my music on." Ryan replied.

She pushed past him into the room and shut off the stereo. Turning back to her son she leveled her best motherly glare at him. "Leave it off and get your homework done." She growled.

"Or what, mother," Ryan said cruelly, "You'll tell Daddy on me?" The words stung as though she had been hit, and she struggled to keep the tears from spilling in front of him. She didn't want him to know how much he had hurt her. She didn't want him to know he had that much power over her. Quickly she stumbled out of the room and down the hall, collapsing onto her own bed. She missed the look of regret on her son's face.

"You shouldn't say such things, Ryan." a soft voice came from the doorway. His twin sister, Jasmine, strode gracefully into the room. "She doesn't deserve to be treated that way."

"I didn't mean to say it." He answered softly. "It just came out."

Jasmine sat on his bed and crossed her legs, twirling her long dark hair with her fingers. She looked up at him with sad mismatched eyes. "What's said is said, little brother." She said.

"Don't call me that, you're only eight minutes older." He sulked. "And anyway, I can't help it. She brings out the worst in me. I can't help it if she hates me."

"She doesn't hate you, Ryan, you know that." Jasmine replied.

"Jaz, you've seen the way she looks at me. Like I'm some new fungus she's just discovered."

"That's not it, Ryan. I think you remind her of…him." Jasmine said quietly.

"What makes you say that?" Ryan said, lounging on the bed and tapping his boot idly with a drumstick.

"Well you obviously don't look a thing like her, now do you?" Jasmine said, smiling.

"Do you think she loved our father?" he asked.

"I think she loved him very much. I think that's why it hurts her so bad when you say things like that to her." Jasmine answered.

Ryan's face was momentarily filled with regret once more. He quickly replaced it with a look of haughty indifference. "I bet she ran him off." He mused.

"That's a horrible thing to say." Jasmine chided gently. She loved her brother dearly, but sometimes she wanted to smack him over the head with a brick. As if sensing that his life was in peril, Ryan jumped from the bed and threw his coat on. "Where are you going?"

"Band practice." He said over his shoulder as he strode out the door and down the stairs.

Jasmine sighed and got up to go find her mother. She was getting a little tired of running interference between the two of them. Sometimes she felt like she was the only adult in the house. She stopped outside her mother's door and heard her softly sobbing inside. Gently she pushed the door open, finding her mother sitting on the bed, a worn out, tearstained piece of paper clutched in her trembling hands.

"Jareth," her mother was saying. "Oh god, I wish you were here." Her mother's tear streaked face was raised toward the ceiling, as though she were calling to some far away place. "Why won't you come when I call you?" her mother sobbed, "I need you, your children need you."

Jasmine closed the door and walked away, unable to bear the sight of her mother when she was like this. Jasmine had never held the bitterness about her father that Ryan did, but she was very curious. Her mother had told them precious little about the man that gave them life, only that he had been forced to leave by his family, and that he didn't know they existed, and she didn't know how to contact him. She had never even told them his last name, only his first.

Jareth…it seemed like such a strong, protective sort of name, almost regal. She would never have told her mother or even Ryan, but she often fantasized about finding their father, about the day he would learn he had children. She would hug him and kiss him and tell him how happy she was to have finally found him. Then she would slap him for causing her mother so much pain. Then she would hug him again. It would happen someday, she knew it would. She entered her room and closed the door softly behind her, picking up the fantasy book she had been reading and sprawling across the bed, instantly engrossed in the story once again.

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Jareth had organized a party to bury the dead. The sun was going down and it would be dark soon, but still the men continued the task of digging graves for the thousands who had fallen in battle over the last few days. Jareth thought perhaps the entire Labyrinth was surrounded by graves by now.

Suddenly he felt a tugging at the back of his mind, a call that begged to be answered. It was Sarah, he knew immediately. He had grown used to the way it felt when she called to him; he could even tell what sort of mood she was in when she did it. Right now she was in pain. Not physical pain, but the emotional hurt that stung him to the core.

She had called many times since the night he had left her so long ago, and each time he had struggled with himself not to go to her. Each time he had won, refusing to even summon a crystal to check on her. He truly believed that it would only make things worse. He had hoped that she would just forget him and move on with her life, but obviously she had not. Her calls had become less frequent over the years, but apparently she had never forgotten him.

He had entertained the though of blocking her voice from his mind. In the end, though, he had decided it wouldn't be fair to her. She deserved to be heard, even if he couldn't answer her. He owed her that much. It was his punishment for causing her so much pain, and he accepted it gracefully.

His mind liked to run away with thoughts of her, thoughts of how nice it would be to see her again, how wonderful it would be to hold her in his arms. Perhaps now that the war was over it would one day be possible, but not likely. Too much time had passed, their time was over. With great effort he pushed her out of his thoughts and continued his grim task.


	2. Unpleasant Business

Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth, or the song that is briefly mentioned below.

Jareth sat uncomfortably at the head of a large stone table in a large empty meeting hall he had almost never stepped foot in before today. To his immediate right was Saren, the Elf Queen. She was radiant this morning, her silver hair flowing down the back of her burgundy gown. You would never know by looking at her that just two days ago she had led an army of Elvin warriors to battle.

Next to her, looking even more uncomfortable than Jareth, was Goran, the Troll King. His large unwieldy body made even the enormous stone chair he was sitting in look small by comparison. His face was contorted into its customary scowl as he attempted to focus his attention on the proceedings.

Across the table from Jareth sat Valerent, the lone representative of what was left of the High Council of Elders. He had come to formally declare the end of hostilities, and to discuss Jareth's claim to the throne of the High King. He was not a very happy person, and his temper was getting the better of him.

"It's absolutely unthinkable that you ally yourself with the elves and the trolls. It is no less than treason against your own people!" Valerent slammed his fist against the table to punctuate the depth of his outrage.

Jareth regarded him coolly, managing to stay calm, barely. He lounged as best he could in the stone monstrosity, one leg thrown over the arm of the chair, and addressed the other man."May I remind you, sir, that it was the High Council that attacked my kingdom, and not the other way around? Don't speak to me of treason."

Valerent refused to be swayed. "You were ordered by your king to relinquish power over the Labyrinth and you refused. What choice was left but to take it by force?"

Jareth's voice was icy as he spoke. "The king had no right to demand that I hand over my kingdom, and I fought to protect my lands and those who look to me as their king. As far as I'm concerned, the entire Council is guilty of treason, and that is why from this moment on it shall be disbanded."

Valerent sputtered, his eyes wide with fury. "You can't do that!"

Jareth smiled cruelly. "I can and I have. And as for the Fae, it's high time my people realized that they aren't better than every other race in the Underground."

Valerent slumped in his chair, defeated, as the finality of the new High King's words set in. "What is to become of me?" he asked softly.

Jareth regarded him for a long moment, giving him time to ponder his fate, before answering. "The Underground as we know it is no more. A new government will be established, with new rulers for the kingdoms whose kings perished during the war. Those with heirs will see those heirs take the throne of their father's as long as they swear loyalty to me as their High King. If not then their lands will be divided among the neighboring kingdoms. All of this will take diplomacy, a skill that I have never been particularly adept at." He ignored Goran's soft chuckle and continued. "I will need advisors, people who know the workings of the under kingdoms and can educate me. If you can keep your mouth shut and learn to respect me as your king, then you may have a place among them."

He knew it was burning the old Fae up inside to be faced with this choice, but he also knew he would need him during the hard months of reconstruction to come. Valerent nodded his tacit agreement, but said nothing.

Saren found an opening to discuss yet another pressing matter. "Your Majesty," she began, "The kingdom of Hylea lost its King during the war, and he had no heir nor anyone directly in line for the throne. What will be done for them?"

Jareth groaned inwardly. He was tired of making decisions that affected people he had never met and kingdoms he had never been to. If High King Orin were still alive, Jareth thought he might kill him again for putting him in this position. "A search will have to be made among the nobility for someone suitable to rule." Jareth decided.

"And if no one can be found?" Saren asked.

"Then we will let the people of Hylea decide." Jareth said.

"That's preposterous!" Valerent huffed. "The people cannot choose their own king!"

"Perhaps not in the old system." Jareth nodded, "But this will not be the old system. This government will emphasize equality among all the peoples of the Underworld, not subjugation by the Fae ruling class. In place of the High Council a new council will be formed with representatives of every race. Even the roaming bands of humans will have a representative."

Valerent was growing angry again. "But…that's an abomination! Humans serving with Fae! It's unheard of!"

Jareth finally lost his temper. He stood quickly, his relaxed pose melting into cold fury. Towering over the former Councilor, he spoke angrily. "That is exactly the sort of small minded ignorance that started this war to begin with. It disgusts me, and it will not be tolerated in my kingdom!" With a look from Saren, Jareth took a deep breath and willed himself to calm down. He sat back in his chair, assuming the most regal pose he could muster. "This war has been long and bloody. The losses on both sides have been numerous. If any good at all is to come from it, we cannot hang on to the bigotry of old."

"Well said." Goran commented. The Troll King did not speak often, but when he did, it said volumes.

Jareth smiled tightly, anxious to be done with this meeting. He hoped to steal a few minutes alone to wander the Labyrinth before some new urgent matter came up. "Thank you, Goran. Now if you would all excuse me…"

It was Valerent who cut him off. "There is still one matter left to discuss, Your Majesty." He said.

"I'm listening." Jareth answered, choosing to ignore the interruption.

"We must discuss who will take your place as Goblin King." Valerent stated.

Jareth paled. He couldn't be suggesting what it sounded like. "What are you talking about?" He asked.

It was Saren who spoke. "He's right, My Lord. You cannot expect to fulfill your duties as both High King and the Goblin King."

Jareth hadn't thought of that. He slouched in his chair, not caring that he looked decidedly unregal. What would he do? _Oh this just keeps getting better and better_, he thought. "I shall have to think on this matter." He finally said. "Now if you will all excuse me, I have other matters to attend to." With that he stood, gave a short bow, and walked as quickly out of the room as protocol would allow.

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The afternoon sun was a welcoming warmth on Sarah's back as it streamed through her office window, but cast an unruly glare on her computer screen. She was putting the finishing touches on her latest horror novel. With any luck at all, she would have it to her publisher by the end of the week.

She marveled once again at how odd it was that the young dreamer who had been lost in a fantasy world and wanted nothing more than to be an actress had grown up to dispense terror for a living. Perhaps, she mused, it was because her own life had become a horror story when her fairy tale had bitten her in the ass. However it had happened, she didn't begrudge it. It had granted her a good living, and made it easier to raise the children alone.

She hit the save button and shut down the word processor, just as she heard the door opening downstairs. The twins were home from school. She rose from the desk and stepped outside the office door to watch them from the landing balcony. Jasmine stepped inside softly, neatly taking off her snow boots and setting them on the mat next to the door. She took her coat off and hung it in the closet, stuffing her hat, scarf, and mittens into the pockets. Ryan stomped in behind her, kicking his boots off haphazardly in front of the door and idly tossing his coat over a dining room chair. She watched with amusement as Jasmine sighed and hung his coat up as well.

"Hi kids!" she called down to them. As they glanced up at her she got a good look at Ryan's face. His eyes were rimmed with black eyeliner, and traces of black lipstick were still visible on his lips. Sarah sighed. He was wearing a black tee shirt with "Authority Bites" on the front. She knew the back of the shirt proclaimed "This Means You Too". Somewhere inside there was a part of her that thought this was immensely funny, but the mother in her was closer to the surface. She scowled at her son disapprovingly, but said nothing.

"Hi mom!" Jasmine said smiling. "Did you get your book finished?"

"Almost, I should get it to the publisher soon." Sarah said, making her way down the stairs. "How was school?"

"Great." Jasmine beamed, sifting through the fruit bowel on the dining room table. Sarah knew without asking that she was looking for a peach. "I tried out for the school play. We're doing Hamlet."

"Really?" Sarah laughed. "And did you try out for Ophelia?" she asked, knowing the answer before it was given.

"Of course not." Jasmine replied, pretending to be offended "I read for Hamlet."

Sarah giggled. "That's my girl." She turned to her son, who was sprawled lazily at the table flipping through a "Guitar Player" magazine. "Ryan? How was your day?" Without looking up he handed her a note.

Sarah opened it frowning. If life had taught her anything it was that nothing good could come from folded pieces of paper with her name on them. She read the short note and sighed. "Ryan? They suspended you for dress code violations again?" she said, exasperated.

"Yep." Ryan answered, turning the page.

"It was the shirt, wasn't it?" Sarah asked.

"Yep." He answered again.

_What am I going to do with him_, she thought. "Ryan, honey, if you don't start following the rules they're going to throw you out of school for good."

"Fine." Ryan says, glaring up at her, "Let them. I'm smarter than all the teachers there anyway." Sarah would have protested, but she knew it was probably true. Ryan was nothing short of a genius, as was Jasmine. Another little gift from Jareth, she was sure, since she had struggled all the way through school just to make B's and C's. "Besides," Ryan continued sullenly. "The sooner they throw me out the sooner I can start practicing with the band full time."

The last thing in the world Sarah wanted to do right now was fight. She had been feeling under the weather all day, and she just wanted a peaceful weekend with the kids. "How is the band going?" she asked.

Ryan eyed her suspiciously, waiting for the trap to spring. "Fine." He said warily.

She smiled pleasantly. "I'd like to hear you practice sometime." She said, remembering the happy little boy that used to sing at the top of his lungs along with the radio. "It's been so long since I heard you sing." She added wistfully.

Ryan looked up at her, his eyes narrow. It never occurred to him that she might just be trying to have a pleasant conversation. "I thought you hated my music." He said.

Sarah tried to hide her frustration, but when it flashed across her face Ryan mistook it for anger. "I don't hate anything about you Ryan!" she said, a little too gruffly.

That minor slip was all it took for Ryan to go on the offensive. "Fine, you want to hear me sing? Let me think, what can I sing?" He eyed her for a minute, then smiled cruelly. "Oh, I know how bout this. 'This love we're contemplating, is it worth the pain of waiting? We'll only end up hating the child we may be creating. LOVE CHILD…." He would have continued but the look on his mother's face made him stop. She was more than angry, more than hurt, she looked absolutely horrified. He instantly wanted to apologize, but Jasmine grabbed his arm and spun him around to face her.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" she fumed. He had never seen his sister so angry. "Have you lost your mind?"

"Jasmine…I…I didn't mean it!" He sputtered.

"Damn it, Ryan, you never mean it! For once in your life why can't you just think before you open your big stupid mouth?" Ryan started to speak, but Jasmine was no longer looking at him. "Mom?" she said, softly, sounding like a frightened child. Ryan turned in time to see his mother collapse to the floor.

"MOM!" he shouted, running to her side and kneeling next to her. He looked up at his sister, who seemed to be frozen with tears streaming down her face. "Jasmine! Call an ambulance!"

Sarah didn't understand what was happening. Ryan's song had been cruel, but he had said much more hurtful things to her in the past. It didn't explain the pain she was feeling right now. For a moment it felt as though her chest would explode, followed by a crushing pain that forced the wind out of her. Unable to breath, she sank to her knees, and then to the floor. The last thing she saw was the twins rushing to her side. She saw their mouths moving, but couldn't hear what they were saying. Then everything went dark.

A/N: I know, I know. An evil place to leave it. Don't worry, the Jareth bits will be more fun in the next chapter (I hope). Thanks for all the reviews. Keep them coming please.

PS. The song Ryan sang was "Love Child" by Diana Ross.


	3. An Ungodly Long Chapter

Disclaimer: I don't own Jareth or Sarah or the song below. I also don't own any of the medical stuff, although if I did insurance would be cheaper.

Jasmine and Ryan huddled together in the corner of the room as the nurse went about her business tending to the many lines and tubes that surrounded their mother. Jasmine had come to think of them as lifelines, holding Sarah to her body. The nurse, a cheerful woman who had introduced herself as Jenny, had patiently explained their true purposes. There were wires on her chest that monitored what her heart was doing, and some on her forehead that monitored what her brain was doing. There were tubes inserted into her veins, some delivering medicine to keep her blood pressure down, others that monitored her blood pressure constantly from the inside. There were machines everywhere, beeping and buzzing, occasionally alarming.

The most frightening thing of all was the large blue machine that was hooked to a tube that went down Sarah's throat. Jenny had told them, as gently as possible, that the machine was breathing for her. Jasmine had grown to despise its ominous clicking noise, followed by a sharp pop. Every time the machine popped, Sarah's chest would rise in a jerky motion that was completely unnatural. Although Jenny tried to smile and be positive, Jasmine knew it was a bad sign that the machine was necessary.

Jenny finished her work and headed to the door. "Maybe you two should go get something to eat." She said, standing in the doorway. "You've been here for hours. We'll take care of her for a while."

Jasmine tried to speak but couldn't seem to get rid of the lump in her throat. Thankfully Ryan spoke up. "We're waiting for our grandparents to get here. They're driving in from Vermont. They should be here any time now."

Jenny nodded. "Okay then. If you need anything, I'll be right outside."

"Thank you." Ryan said, and then added, "For everything."

Jenny smiled softly and left the room. It seemed immediately, although it might have been hours later, but Jenny poked her head back inside. "I found some folks skulking around out here." She joked, "Do they belong to you?"

Robert, Karen, and Toby followed her into the room. Karen immediately pulled the twins into a wordless hug. Robert hesitated for a second and then joined them. The four of them huddled together, clinging to each other for support. Toby stepped to the side of the bed and stared at his sister, eyes glistening. With trembling fingers he stroked her hair.

The next few minutes were passed in silence as the five of them tried to come to terms with what was happening. When the door opened again, a tall man in a white lab coat and a crooked smile stepped in. "Mr. and Mrs. Williams? I'm Dr. Newby, the chief cardiologist here at St. Luke's." he told them. "If you all would like to step outside to the waiting room, we can discuss your daughter's condition."

Dr Newby led them to the waiting room, and after they had all found a seat, he began to speak once again. "I'm afraid Sarah has suffered a major heart attack." He said, waiting for the expected shock to register with the gathered family members.

"How is that possible?" Robert asked, "She's only thirty-four."

The doctor paused for a moment, trying to decide how best to continue. "When your daughter arrived here, we began a series of tests." He began, "One of them was a 3D echocardiogram. It showed that she had a congenital defect in the left anterior descending artery of her heart."

"Congenital?" Karen asked.

"It means she was born with it." Jasmine explained, numbly staring at the space above the doctor's left shoulder.

"That's exactly right." The doctor told them, "It's been there all her life, like a time bomb waiting to go off. Sarah has probably been experiencing shortness of breath and mild chest pain for some time now, but didn't think anything of it. However, it was only a matter of time before the artery gave way."

"So what does it mean?" Jasmine asked anxiously, her mind trying desperately to focus. "Will she get better?"

Dr. Newby looked down at his notes, and began shuffling them nervously. He hated this part of his job; he had never been able to look a family in the eye when he gave them bad news. "Things don't look very good for your mother at this point." He said finally. Summoning his courage he looked up at the young girl who was counting on him to help her mother. "You see, the heart attack damaged the anterior wall of her heart, and the tissue there is becoming necrotic…it's dying. We've put her on medications that will decrease the workload on her heart and hopefully give those tissues time to regenerate, but the odds are not in her favor. At this point I'm afraid it's really not up to us anymore."

Jasmine thought she was having a heart attack of her own as the doctor's words sank in. She felt more than heard herself moaning, beginning in the pit of her stomach and working its way up until it caught in her throat, where it became a sob. Karen put her arms around her granddaughter's shoulders and the two women cried together. Robert leaned over and put his head in his hands, disbelief turning into hopelessness.

Toby looked around numbly and realized that Ryan wasn't with them. Leaving the rest of his family to mourn, he went back to Sarah's room to find his nephew.

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Ryan watched his family leave the room, and then pulled a chair close to Sarah's bed. He gently took one pale hand in his own, mindful of the IV tubing that protruded from it. He didn't know when he'd ever have a chance to speak to her alone again, and there were things he needed to say.

"Mother," he said softly, "I'm so sorry. I never meant to hurt you. I don't know why I say the things I do. I know it's not your fault that our father left." He paused, fighting back tears. "I guess I just get frustrated and I want someone to blame, but that's no excuse. I've treated you horribly, and said things to you that I'm so ashamed of. You never deserved to be treated that way. You were a great mother to us, no one could have asked for better."

He wanted to say more, but he couldn't seem to find the words. How did you make up for something like this? He didn't even know if she could hear him, but he wanted her to know how much he really loved her. Softly, his voice tenuous as he tried to remember the words, he began to sing. She had wanted him to sing for her, and that much he could giver her. Finding the words at last, he sang a lullaby, a song she had sang to him and Jasmine nearly every night when they were little.

There's such a sad love deep in your eyes

A kind of pale jewel opened and closed

Within your eyes, I'll place the stars within your eyes.

There's such a fools heart beating so fast

In search of new dreams a love that will last

Within your heart, I'll place the moon within your heart.

As the pain sweeps through makes no sense for you,

Every thrill is gone, wasn't too much fun at all.

But I'll be there for you,

As the world falls down.

He couldn't finish, as the tears that had threatened finally broke free. Not knowing what else to do, he laid his head on the bed next to his mother's hand and wept like a child. Feeling a hand on his shoulder he looked up to find his Uncle Toby standing behind him. "She's dying, isn't she?" he asked.

Toby hesitated, but what use would it be to lie to the boy? "Yes." He said simply.

"This is my fault." Ryan said, tears streaming down his face. "I did this to her."

"That's not true, Ryan." Toby said, "The doctor said it was something she was born with, it was just a matter of time."

Ryan shook his head. "But Uncle Toby, you didn't hear the way I talked to her. I can't believe I was so cruel."

Toby laughed, a bitter sound that held no humor at all. "You're a sixteen year old boy, Ryan, and that makes you stupid, not cruel." He said. "Now come on, let me take you and Jas home. You don't need to stay here tonight."

&&&&&&&(&(())()(&)(&&&&&#&&&&(&&

They rode in silence, each one staring out of their windows and into their own thoughts. Suddenly Jasmine broke the spell that seemed to have kept them all from speaking. "Uncle Toby," she asked, "What do you know about our father?"

Toby looked at her cautiously, a little afraid of where this was going. "Well…" he began, "I was four when you guys were born, so I probably know less than you do. Why do you ask?"

Jasmine was quiet for a minute, trying to decide if it was even worth saying out loud. "I was thinking," she said finally, "Wherever he is, he would probably want to know what was happening with mom."

"Why would he?" Ryan asked from the back seat. "He abandoned her once and left her to raise us alone. What makes you think he would care about her now?"

Jasmine turned in her seat to face her brother. "You know that's not true." She said angrily. "He was forced to leave her. He doesn't even know about us."

"That's the story she tells us. It doesn't necessarily mean it's true." Ryan countered.

"Are you calling her a liar now?" Jasmine asked, anger flashing in her mismatched eyes.

"Not at all." Ryan said, trying to calm his sister down. "I'm just saying she may have padded the truth a little to make it easier for us to accept."

Toby was growing more and more uncomfortable with the conversation. "It doesn't matter anyway." He interrupted. "As far as I know there's no way to contact him. Believe me, if there was Dad would have done it a long time ago."

Jasmine turned back to face her window, lost once again in her thoughts, and the rest of the drive was silent.

(&(&((&()&)(&(&&&&)(&)(&)(&(&&(((&()&)(&(&&(&)(&)(&

Toby dropped them off at home and headed back to the hospital. As Ryan and Jasmine entered the house, Jasmine grabbed her brother's arm. "I have an idea." She said.

Ryan raised and eyebrow warily. "I'm listening." He said.

"Mother keeps things in her nightstand, things that were our father's." Jasmine said excitedly.

"How do you know that?" Ryan asked.

"I've seen her." Jasmine said. "Sometimes after…sometimes when she's upset she goes up there and goes through that drawer."

Ryan caught the way she had amended her sentence and was grateful to her for not rubbing in the guilt he was feeling. Even so, he wasn't sure he was going to like what she had in mind. "So what's your idea?" he asked her.

"Ryan!" she was completely surprised and disappointed that he didn't' already know where she was going with this. "Maybe there's a clue as to how to find him up there. And even if there isn't, don't you want to know more about him?"

"Not especially." Ryan lied.

Jasmine heaved an exasperated sigh. "You know, for someone who gives mother such a hard time about him, you really don't seem to care much."

There was the barb he had been expecting. He knew she hadn't meant it, she didn't even seem to realize she had done it, but that didn't stop it from hurting him. "I do care." He said, deciding to be honest. "I guess I'm just afraid."

"Afraid of what?" Jasmine asked.

"That we'll get up there and there will be nothing." He answered, surprised at his own candor.

Jasmine squeezed his arm reassuringly. "I'm afraid of that too." She said. "But we'll never know unless we try."

(&&&&&&&(&(&&&&&&(&(&(&&&&&&

They had crept up the stairs, neither one of them knowing why they felt the need for stealth. It just seemed wrong, somehow, being in Sarah's room. Ryan had almost turned back, but Jasmine pointed out that if their mother died, someone would have to go through these things. If the things here concerned their father, then wasn't it their right to see them first?

So now they were there, sitting on the edge of Sarah's bed, as Jasmine quietly pulled the drawer to her nightstand open. Both of them leaned in to look inside, as though they were archeologists opening a king's tomb for the first time. The first things they found were a pair of hardcover books, one pink, one blue. "Our baby books." Jasmine said, handing the blue one to Ryan.

She opened the pink one and began flipping through it. It held copies of baby pictures she had seen a thousand times, tiny footprints, and everything else you would expect to find in a book like that one. Only one page really caught her attention. On it was a tiny lock of dark hair tied together with pink ribbon, with her name written under it. Next to it was a longer lock of thick ebony hair, with her mother's name written in neat script..

Breathlessly Jasmine took the blue book back from Ryan and flipped through it looking for a similar page. Finally she found it. On the right side of the page, was a lock of fine blond hair tied with a blue ribbon, with Ryan's name underneath it. Next to it, instead of a lock, were several long strands of silvery blonde hair taped securely to the page. Beneath them was written the word 'Jareth.'

"I told you you look like him." Jasmine said, her voice trembling.

"Well, I have his hair at least." Ryan agreed. He didn't let on to his sister just how much the sight of those hairs had shaken him, but something inside him had stirred.

Jasmine reluctantly closed the book and pushed them both aside. The next thing they found in the bag was a zip lock bag with a piece of cloth folded up inside. The bag was labeled "Jareth's Smell." They looked at each other, puzzled.

"Weird." Ryan said.

"I recognize it." Jasmine said. "Mother used to have a sheet set like this when we were kids. I think it's a pillowcase." She opened the bag cautiously and sniffed inside it. Then, closing her eyes, she took a deep breath. The smell was sweet and musky and somehow wild, the smell of her father she realized. Tears began to stream down her face as she imagined how her mother must have felt when she sealed the pillowcase inside the plastic bag, desperate to save something of him. She passed the bag to Ryan, but he closed it back up and set it aside. Whatever it was that affected Jasmine so deeply, he'd just as soon stay away from it.

Finally they came to the thing that Jasmine had been searching for. She was almost afraid to touch it, as though it would crumble beneath her fingers. Finally, with shaking hands, she took it from the drawer and unfolded it. There, in a perfect scrawling script, was the heartbreak that their mother had never been able to share with them.

_My Dearest Sarah,_

_Before I say anything else, I want you to know that I love you more than I ever thought I was capable. Your love and friendship have made me a better man, and I will always be grateful for the time we've shared._

_I realized last night that the time has come to end our relationship. Our love would never be accepted by my people, and were you to join me in the Underground I fear your life would be in danger. _

_You deserve better than this hidden affair we now possess. I want you to be happy and live your dreams, which I now realize I can't give you. _

_In all the long years of my life, I have never felt a pain as great as what I'm feeling now. Saying goodbye to you is the hardest thing I will ever do._

_I know that as you read this your heart is breaking, just as mine breaks to know I have caused you such pain. I hope that one day you will forgive me and remember me with fondness. Please understand that I'm only trying to do what is best for you._

_This is the last contact we shall have, Darling Sarah, as I will not even look in on you as I have done in the past. The temptation to see you again would be too great. Farewell, My Heart, and know that I will love you until my last breath._

_Eternally Yours,_

_Jareth_

There was poetry at the bottom of the letter, but Jasmine was crying too hard to read it. "It's so strange." Ryan said, his voice husky with barely controlled emotions.

"What is?" Jasmine asked, wiping away tears.

"Was he in the Mafia or something?" Ryan wondered. "He said her life would be in danger if they stayed together, and he mentioned the underground."

"I guess that would explain why Mom never told us more about him." She said. "But it doesn't make sense. How would a seventeen year old schoolgirl from Vermont get mixed up with the Mafia?"

"I don't know." Ryan conceded, "But it's very strange."

Jasmine reached into the drawer again, and this time she found a small book. It was bound in red leather, and the word "Labyrinth" was embossed on the cover in gold lettering. "What's that?" Ryan asked.

"It's a book." Jasmine answered.

"I can see that." Ryan snapped, "Why's it there?"

"I don't know." Jasmine said, as she opened the book and began flipping through it. "Maybe Jareth gave it to her." She began to idly skim through the pages when suddenly her eye caught a name. "Look!" she said. There in the middle of the page was the strangest clue of all.

"Jareth, the Goblin King" Ryan read aloud. "What the hell?" He took the book from her and discovered several more passages that mentioned Jareth, and many more that mentioned the 'Goblin King.' He started reading aloud, and gradually the story became clear.

"What does it mean, Ryan?" Jasmine asked.

Ryan closed the book and put it back in the drawer. "It doesn't mean anything." He said, standing up, "It's just a story." Without another word he headed for the door.

Jasmine stared behind him in disbelief. "Where are you going?"

"It's Friday." He said. "I have a gig tonight."

"Tonight?" Jasmine stammered. "How can you go tonight? Our mother is dying, or have you forgotten."

"Of course I haven't forgotten." Ryan sneered. "But I can't do anything to help her sitting around here."

"Please don't go." Jasmine said, her voice small.

Ryan sighed. "You could come with me."

Jasmine shook her head. "No, I should stay here in case…in case someone needs to reach us."

Ryan nodded wordlessly, then spun on his heel and left her alone in the room with her thoughts. Tears in her eyes Jasmine began putting away Sarah's keepsakes, taking great care to put them back exactly the way her mother had them. As she closed the drawer she sighed. "Daddy, I don't know where you are," she whispered to the empty room, "But right now I wish you were here."

&&(()())(()&&&&&(((&&&(&(&(&

Jareth was slouched lazily in his throne, his tight black pants and flowing black poet's shirt serving as a visual aid to his dark mood. Saren stood before him, long suffering and patient, trying to reason with the stubborn Goblin King, but he was in no mood to be reasoned with. "I can't believe you want me to give up my kingdom," he drawled. "You might as well ask me to give up my heart."

Saren sighed and straightened her shoulders, preparing for another round of sharp words with the King. "Jareth, you must realize that you can't rule both kingdoms at once." She said.

Jareth sat up and leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. He held his palms outstretched to her, begging her to understand his position. "My family has sat on this throne for three thousand years. I'd sooner give up the High Kingdom than see anyone else ruling here." He sat back, his shoulders slumped, and ran his fingers through his unruly hair. "If only Seth were alive.."

"But he's not." Saren interrupted, "And you have no heir. You cannot continue to be split between two kingdoms, Jareth. You have no choice but to find someone to take your place as Goblin King."

Jareth sat up suddenly, a familiar tingling at that back of his mind. He was being summoned to the above world. _Wonderful bloody timing_, he thought darkly. Who could be calling him? It was not a pull that he recognized, yet there was something familiar about it. "I'm sorry Saren," he said standing. "We'll have to continue this discussion some other time."

"Where are you going?" Saren asked.

Jareth merely glared at her and disappeared from the room.

(&&&&(&()&(&&&&((&(&()&(&&&&&&&&

Jasmine took one last look inside her mother's room and then pulled the door closed behind her. As the door was closing she thought she heard the bedroom window fly open. "That's impossible." She muttered to herself. Yet when she opened the door again, the white curtains that framed the bay window were billowing inward, and moonlight spilled onto the hardwood floor.

Curious, she crossed the room to the window, swinging the heavy glass pane closed again. As she turned around a chill ran up her spine, and she got the distinct impression that she was being watched. Standing perfectly still, nothing moving but her eyes, she glances around the room. In the corner of her eye the figure of a man stood watching her. Her heart began to pound wildly as she stared at the unexpected shadow from the corner of her eye.

&&#&(&()&(&&&&&#&#&#&&

Jareth found himself in a large, dark bedroom with white curtains billowing out from the widow through which he had just entered. He glanced around the room, looking for the person that summoned him. Quick movement caught his eye and he saw the door as it began to close and then hesitantly opened again. There was a figure on the other side, small and slight, yet with a courage and defiance that permeated the atmosphere around him. He found the feeling inexplicably familiar.

His heart began to pound even before his mind could register the similarities that he was seeing. There was a girl before him, long dark hair flowing down her back, her shoulders squared in a courage that belied her years. Everything about her made his heart scream the word Sarah, yet his mind knew it could not be so.

He tried to reason with himself. This girl was taller, only a few inches shorter than he, while Sarah had come barely to the level of his throat. Still, his mind could not let go of the similarities, and he found himself holding his breath as he took a tentative step forward.

(&(&&(&(&()()()(&(&&&&(&()&)(&)()()&&&(&

Jasmine watched the figure, her heart dancing in her chest. She knew she should be afraid, yet for some reason she wasn't. She stepped closer to the shadowy figure, his face concealed in shadow. As she came forward he took a hesitant step forward and suddenly his face was bathed in soft moon glow.

Jasmine froze. She could have been looking into the future, for before her she surely saw the face of her brother in twenty years. His face was haughty, yet with a softness that she knew only she could see. Everything about him was foreign yet achingly familiar at the same time. She knew there was only one person this could be, even though her mind tried to warn her against getting her hopes up.

"My God." She whispered, hardly realizing that she had spoken. "You're him aren't you?"

"I know who I am." The figure replied arrogantly, his voice daring. "The question is, little girl, who are you?"

Without hesitation she spoke. "I'm Jasmine. Jasmine Williams."

_Williams?_ Jareth fought valiantly to control the trembling that suddenly beset his hands. Taking another step forward he plucked a crystal from the air, turning it in his fingers until it flashed alight.

The girl before him turned her face away from the brightness of the glowing orb in the darkness. He raised his hand, hesitating for only a second, before bringing it gently to rest on the girl's shoulder. "Look at me, little girl." He said gently.

She turned her face to him, allowing him to see her truly for the first time. His heart froze in his chest, and his mind searched frantically to explain what he was seeing. Before him was a young girl, younger even then Sarah had been when he saw her last, but with Sarah's face. And from that face, his own eyes were staring back at him.

He wanted to speak, but couldn't find the words. Before he had the chance his suspicions were confirmed as the girl spoke first, turning his world upside down with two short words.

"Hi Daddy."

A/N: Could someone please explain to me why I feel the need to put Sarah in mortal danger in every damn story I write? It has to be some deep psychological issue. Anyway, the reviews for this story so far have been awesome. Thank you, everyone. They make my day.

This is the longest chapter I have ever written. I probably should have cut it in half, but aren't you glad I didn't? Please enjoy, and leave a little present for me in the review box.

By the way, nurse Jenny is a brazen self insert. I hope you like her.


	4. Daddy's Little Girl

Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth, but I do own Jasmine, who I'm quickly learning to adore.

Jasmine stared with shimmering eyes into the face of the man she had longed for all her life. For as look as she could remember, she had dreamed of the day she would finally meet her father. Now that day was here, and she didn't know what to do. The expression oh his face would have been comical in any other situation. If she had ever had any doubts as to whether or not he knew Sarah was pregnant when he left, they were gone now. He was completely unprepared for her.

His eyes were filled with shock, dismay, and also wonder. It was this undisguised emotion that freed her to move once again. Without another thought she threw her arms around him, needing desperately to be comforted, to have someone whisper in her ear that everything would be okay.

Jareth's mind was reeling. How was this possible? _Oh, you are the King of Stupid Questions_, he thought miserably. Obviously he had left Sarah with more than a note. His mind was racing, a thousand thoughts and emotions struggling with each other to be recognized and dealt with. How could he have been so stupid? He should have known it was a possibility, he should have checked on her long enough to know.

It was no wonder Sarah had never stopped calling to him. He had abandoned her to raise his child alone.

His child. His own daughter, as beautiful and perfect as her mother, standing before him with shining eyes filled with despair and hope. All other thoughts were swept aside as the child threw her arms around him. He caught his breath, momentarily surprised by the fearlessness of the action. But why should he be surprised? She was Sarah's daughter, after all.

He found himself filled with a new emotion, something that until a few minutes ago had been as foreign to him as love had been before he met Sarah. He felt a bond awakening, not being born, but being drawn from its hiding place. He had felt so empty since that night so long ago, and always assumed that it was the loss of Sarah that had caused it. That was, no doubt, part of it. But now he felt part of the emptiness filling, and realized that somewhere deep inside him he had known about the child, and had longed for her as he longed for her mother.

Pushing away all doubt, all pain, the Goblin King pulled his daughter tightly into his arms. At this unspoken promise of acceptance she laid her head on his chest and wept bitterly, hardly stopping to breath.

"Shh….hush little girl." Jareth whispered, "Everything will be fine now, don't cry." Inexplicably, the girl in his arms seemed to both laugh and cry harder at the same time.

Jasmine clung to him for a few minutes more in silence, until she knew she could stand on her own again. Then she pulled away to look again into the eyes that were so like her own. "I can't believe you're really here." She said reverently.

He didn't smile, but smirked instead. A chill ran up her spine as the ghost of her brother appeared before her. "Actually, I can't believe you're really here." Jareth said honestly.

"You really didn't know, did you?" she asked.

"Things would have been very different if I had." He told her, and her heart leapt.

Her next question had been burning in her mind for so many years that it sprang from her mouth of its own volition. "Why did you leave her?"

Jareth looked at her warily, and then crossed the room to stand at the window. "How much has she told you?" he asked her.

Jasmine hesitated. How could she tell her father that he had been nothing more than a footnote her entire life? "All she would ever tell us was your name, and that your family forced you to leave her."

Jareth chuckled softly, knowing how stubbornly Sarah would have fought to keep the rest a secret. "That's my Sarah." He said, so softly that Jasmine almost didn't hear him. Almost.

She watched him silently for a moment. When no other explainations were forthcoming, she continued. "Then today, I read the note you left her." She paused when he tilted his face to look at her, but went on, "Were you really afraid for her life?"

Jareth returned his gaze to the trees outside the window. "I would never have left her had it not been so." He said.

"But I don't understand." Jasmine pondered, sitting on the edge of Sarah's bed. "Why would your family want to hurt my mother?"

"Not my family, they may actually have understood." Jareth began, wondering how much he should tell her. Finally he decided that the day had come to lay all the cards on the table. She was his daughter, a Fae princess, and she deserved no less than the truth. "It was the rest of my race that I was afraid of. They would have hated Sarah because she was human, and they would have been outraged at our relationship. At best her life would have been a living nightmare, and at worst she would have met with an unfortunate…accident."

Jasmine heard all of it, but couldn't seem to get passed one particular phrase. "Because she was human?" she asked. What the hell did that mean? "Are you saying you're not human?"

Jareth turned to her then, crossing the room to kneel down next to her. Looking up into her eyes he studied her, and gave her time to study him. He wanted her to see the differentness of him before he answered. He waited, and was rewarded by a sudden flash of recognition in her eyes. Smiling he took her hand in his and continued. "No, little one, I'm not human. And neither are you."

To his surprise, she didn't argue, or even seem surprised. Of course, he had just popped into Sarah's room out of no where. Humans tended to use the front door. And he was certainly dressed like no human she had known before. Besides, hadn't she always felt like she was different, something…other? Hadn't her mother always treated her that way? No, she didn't doubt his words at all, but she was filled with questions, too many to have answered in one lifetime. She settled for the most obvious. "What are we then?" she asked softly.

Jareth smiled, grateful that there had been no emotional outbursts. She may have been Sarah's child, but by the Gods there was some of him in her as well. "We are Fae, immortals from a land that doesn't exist in the same dimension as this one."

"Oh." Was all she said, but her mind was racing. _Immortal_? Now there was something to think about. "You mean, nothing can kill us?"

Jareth laughed bitterly, thinking of the thousands of graves that now surrounded his Labyrinth. "Oh, there a great many things that can kill us, I assure you." He said. "But our kind suffer no natural death. Left alone we would live forever."

"Oh." She said again.

"I'm sure you have a great many questions." He said, and she nodded.

"Ye." She said softly, distractedly.

"May I ask one first?" he said.

"Of course." She told him, trying to focus on him again.

"Where is your mother?" Her heart sank. She had almost forgotten about Sarah, about the heart condition that would soon take her away. Tears began swelling again. It just wasn't fair! She had finally found her father, and now she would lose her mother.

Jareth saw the look on his daughter's face and felt cold dread welling in the pit of his stomach. He stood up and took a seat next to her on the bed, putting an arm around her. "Something's wrong with Sarah." He wasn't asking, he already knew.

Jasmine nodded mutely, fighting to find her voice. "She in the hospital." She whispered. "She's dying."

Jareth stood immediately, holding his hand out to her. "Take me." He said.

She stood and looked at him curiously. "You want to go to the hospital?" she asked.

"Yes."

She looked him up and down. "You'll have to change first." He reached into nothing and pulled out a crystal sphere like the one he had used to light the room earlier. This one he dropped at his feet and instead of the crash she had expected there was only a soft pop and a cloud of glitter. When it settled, he was wearing blue jeans, a button down shirt, and his impossible hair was brushed neatly back and hanging at his shoulders. "Cool!" she said, smiling.

"Is this acceptable?" he asked her.

"Absolutely." She told him, taking his hand and leading him towards the door.

"Where are we going." He asked her and she stopped.

"To the hospital." She said, looking at him curiously. "We have to go to the garage first. That's where the car is."

Jareth laughed, the first real laughter she had heard from him. It was rich and resonating and made the room seem brighter somehow. He regarded her lovingly, and placed his hands gently on either side of her face. Closing his eyes, he felt for the magic she was born with, finally finding it as it coursed deep beneath her skin. It pulsed under his fingers, like a switch waiting to be turned on. He opened his eyes and looked deep into hers, and willed the Fae inside her to awaken.

Her eyes widened. "What…?"

"Shh…" he said. "Just let it happen." He felt her heartbeat quicken, and her skin became flushed. She seemed terrified at first, but it passed quickly and to his delight her expression turned to one of sheer wonder.

"Now.." he said. "Picture a crystal like this one." He pulled another crystal from the air, manipulated it at his fingertips for a second, and then sent it away again. "Crystals are the keys to our magic. They focus our will. Imagine a room full of them, and imagine that you are reaching inside a door. Will it to happen, and pull one of the crystals from the room."

Jasmine looked at him doubtfully, but the new power she felt flowing through her gave her the motivation to try it. Closing her eyes, she did as he said, feeling a little silly. She reached her hand into the air and imagined the crystal as he had told her to, fully expecting to fail. She squealed with delight when her hand became heavy and she opened her eyes to find a perfectly form crystal orb at her fingertips. "Did I really do that?" she asked excitedly.

Jareth smiled fondly. "Yes, love, you did." She was quick, it had taken him three tries to do it the first time. "Now," he continued, taking her free hand in his. "Imagine the place where your mother is, preferably a part where there aren't likely to be any people. Imagine it clearly in your mind and when you can see it as though you're there, will yourself to be there and throw the crystal."

Jasmine glanced at him uncertainly, but he squeezed her hand encouragingly. _Is this the Fae equivalent to learning to ride a bicycle_, she wondered. She closed her eyes and after a second of thought, imagined the bathroom in the hallway outside the waiting room. She pictured it clearly in her mind, seeing the blue-green porcelain tile, picturing the cracks in the sink, even seeing the empty toilet paper holder. When she had the image fixed in her mind, she willed herself. She was stunned by the unfamiliar surge of power that welled inside her. She through the crystal and held her breath, unsure what to do next.

"You can open your eyes now." Jareth's voice said behind her. She did, and found they were standing in the bathroom, facing the empty paper roller. She squealed again and jumped up and down. She threw her arms around Jareth's neck and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you Daddy." She said.

Jareth pulled back, momentarily shocked. Then he put his hand on his cheek and a warm smile spread across his face. Before he knew what he was doing, he leaned over and kissed the top of her head. "That's nothing, little one." He told her. "There are still many things for you to learn."

Jasmine stuck her head out the bathroom door and when she saw there was no one in the hallway, she motioned for Jareth to follow her. They stepped into the hallway and began walking toward the ICU where Sarah was. As they passed the waiting room a familiar voice called out her name.

"Jasmine!" it was her grandfather. She stopped suddenly, and paled.

"Oh crap!" she hissed. She had completely forgotten that her grandparents were still here. What was she going to say?

Robert was coming towards her now, Karen and Toby right behind him. "Jasmine, what are you doing here?" he asked her, pulling her into a hug. Jasmine was about to speak when she heard Karen gasp.

"Oh my god!" Karen said. She was staring at Jareth. "He looks just like Ryan!"

Jareth raised an eyebrow and looked at Jasmine quizzically. Before he could ask who Ryan was, everyone started speaking at once. Karen was asking a thousand questions, Toby was asking how she had gotten there, and Robert was demanding to know who Jareth was. Jareth wordlessly watched the scene momentarily, but noticed that Jasmine was growing more and more uncomfortable. Finally he had had enough. "Silence!" he commanded, his voice at normal volume but with a tone that was undeniable. Looking back at Jasmine he asked calmly, "Who is Ryan?"

Jasmine smiled sheepishly. She couldn't believe she had forgotten to mention him until now. "Um…Ryan's my twin brother." She said softly.

She was afraid he would be angry with her. His face seemed to become even paler than usual, although it was hard to tell. He stared at her, no expression on his face at all. Then the lopsided smirky smile that was so familiar yet foreign at the same time lit his face once again. "I have a son?" he asked. Jasmine nodded, smiling at his obvious delight. He pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly. "I have a whole family." He chuckled softly.

Robert looked from his granddaughter to the man standing next to her and back again. He was tired and grieving and his mind was slower than usual, so it took a minute for realization to sink in.

"Okay." He said, looking at Jareth, "Just who the hell are you?"

A/N: This chapter took a few turns I wasn't intending, but they felt right. It was a fun chapter to write, and I hope you all enjoy it. Thank you all so much for the wonderful reviews, and I'm glad you like the story so far. Please, keep leaving you little presents in the box, they make me type faster.


	5. The Labyrinth

Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth.

Jareth stepped back and regarded the angry man before him coolly. He should be indignant. He was a High King, after all; no one spoke to him in such a manner. On the other hand, Jasmine was pleading with him with silent eyes. He took a deep breath and made a conscious effort to be civil. "You must be Sarah's father." He said as pleasantly as he could manage. "She has your eyes."

"And my granddaughter has your eyes." Robert Williams answered coldly. "So I'll ask you again, who are you?"  
Jareth detected the anger in his tone and chided himself for being offended. Of course this man had every right to be angry with him. What he had done had been unforgivable, even if it was unintentional. "I'm sorry." Jareth said, his smile more genuine than before. "My name is Jareth, and as you have no doubt surmised, I am Jasmine's father." He held out his hand in the fashion he knew to be customary in aboveground greetings, but Sarah's father only glared at him.

"You unbelievable bastard." Richard sneered. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't deck you right here."

Anger flashed in the Goblin King's mismatched eyes. Whether he deserved it or not, he was unaccustomed to being spoken to in such a way. Before he could react, however, Jasmine stepped between the two men.

"Grandpa, stop it!" she hissed, her tone angrier than either man had imagined possible.

"Stay out of this, Jasmine." Robert told her, gently pushing her aside. But Jasmine refused to be so easily dismissed.

"I will not stay out of it." She snapped, fists clenched at her sides. "All my life I've listened to you bad mouth my father, when you didn't even know him. You never had any idea what really happened, but what you didn't know you made up. You didn't care that my mother cried herself to sleep at night; you didn't even care how your words hurt Ryan and me. You have done nothing but talk for as long as I can remember and its time for you to just shut up!" Jasmine was mindful of her surroundings, keeping her voice low, but the fury in her eyes was unmistakable.

"Jasmine!" Karen gasped, "That is no way to speak to your Grandfather!"

Jasmine spun around to face Karen and would have lashed out at her as well, but Jareth steeped in. "Your Grandmother is right, Jasmine." He said softly, her sudden anger serving to temper his. Turning to Robert he added, "And Mister Williams, I can't blame you for being angry. All I can say is that I loved Sarah very much and only had her best interests in mind when I left." Robert moved to speak, obviously not satisfied with this answer, but Jareth held up a hand to silence him. "Perhaps later there will be time for further discussion, but for now I want to see Sarah."

With that he turned to follow Jasmine, who had already begun walking down the hallway. He could tell by her gait that she was upset. When he caught up to her he grabbed her arm to stop her. She turned around, displaying hot tears shimmering through her smoldering eyes. At his questioning look she squared her jaw in the same way he had seen Sarah do a thousand times when she was preparing to be stubborn. "Why did you stop me?" she cried, "All my life I've wanted to tell him to got to hell for the way he talked about you! Why didn't you let me?"  
"Because you would have regretted it later." He told her, tucking a wayward hair behind her ear. "The day will no doubt come when you find you have too many natural enemies to go around making more out of the people who love you."

Jasmine smiled despite herself. "Was that fatherly advice?" she asked

Jareth smiled. "I believe it was." He said, offering his arm as they continued down the hall. "My very first. How did I do?"

"Not bad." She grinned. Their stolen moment of happiness was cut short as they arrived outside Sarah's door. Robert, Karen, and Toby had followed them, but Jasmine ignored them as she turned to address Jareth once again. "I should warn you, Mom won't look the way you remember her."

"Of course not." Jareth said, "It's been nearly seventeen years, I realize she's older now."

"Yes, but that's not what I mean." Jasmine told him. "She's surrounded by machines and tubes and wires that are helping to keep her alive. She'll be swollen and pale and she won't look at all like the Sarah you remember. She doesn't look at all like she did yesterday. I just want you to be prepared."

Jareth nodded mutely, but Karen spoke up before Jasmine could open the door. "Wait a minute. Why is she explaining this to you like you've never been in a hospital before?"

It was Toby, of all people, who answered her. "Because he hasn't." he said. "Where he comes from people don't have heart conditions. I don't think they get sick at all."

Jasmine spun around, her eyes narrow. "How do you know that?" She demanded. Karen and Robert were also looking at their son with great interest.

"Because Sarah told me everything." He said calmly, waiting for the storm to begin.

Karen's eyes widened, even though she had no idea just what 'everything' entailed. "When?" she asked breathlessly.

"Years ago." He answered.

Jasmine's eyes were flashing once again. "You lied to me!" she hissed, but Toby merely shook his curly blonde head.

"It wasn't my place to tell you anything." He told her.

"Not even when I asked you point blank in the car?" she demanded.

Toby leaned close to her and winked conspiratorially. "Why do you think I left you and Ryan home alone?" Realization spread across Jasmine's face like wildfire, and with it came a new respect for her Uncle Toby, who had always been the coolest person she knew anyway.

Karen began to ask more questions, but Toby stopped her. "Jareth's right, Mom, now is not the time or place for this conversation." He said, gesturing toward the Goblin King. Jareth had heard very little of the conversation taking place behind him, however, as he continued to stare at Sarah's door as though he expected to find a pit of poisonous snakes on the other side.

Jasmine looked at her father apprehensively before pushing the door open. She felt him stiffen beside her as he got his first glimpse of the woman he loved in nearly two decades.

Jareth walked stiffly into the room, his heart beating faster than he would have thought possible. Although Jasmine had warned him of Sarah's condition, nothing could have prepared him for what he was seeing. Gone was the vibrant, playful, stubborn hope filled girl that had haunted his dreams these last long years. In her place was a sallow shell, a mere shadow of the girl he had known and loved.

He felt hot tears welling in his eyes, and fought to keep them in check. "What…" he started, choking down the lump that had risen in his throat, "What is wrong with her, exactly?" he asked.

"It's her heart." Karen answered, "Some defect that's apparently been hiding since she was born."

"And this…defect. It will kill her?" He asked, his voice catching on the word kill.

"So they tell us." Robert said, setting aside his anger as he recognized the honest grief in the man beside him for what it was.

It didn't seem possible to Jareth for this to be true. The Sarah he had remembered had been perfect. There had been nothing defective about her. She was beautiful and healthy and her eyes had glinted with life. How could such an insidious killer have been lurking within her all along? "But she's so strong." Jareth said, sounding for all the world like a child begging not to be punished. "Why doesn't she fight?"

"She is fighting." A new voice said from the doorway. Jasmine turned to see Jenny, the nurse she had met earlier that day, leaning against the doorframe. "At this point, every heartbeat is her way of defying death. If she wasn't fighting, she'd be gone already." Jareth smiled tightly as the woman's words brought images to his mind of Sarah 'defying death.' Her choice of phrasing was more appropriate than she would ever know.

Even as these thoughts were wisping through his mind, alarms began to sound throughout the room. Jenny wasted no time pushing her way into the room and to Sarah's bedside.

"What's happening?" Jasmine asked plaintively.

Jenny didn't answer, but hit the intercom button on the wall and spoke loudly into it. "Get Doctor Newby and the crash cart in here stat! And someone call a code!" Turning her attention once again to the five worried faces at the foot of the bed, she began ushering them out of the room. "You'll have to wait outside." She told them.

No sooner had they stepped into the hallway than a flock of doctors and nurses brushed past them into the room. "What's her pressure?" one of them asked.

"Sixty over forty and dropping." Jenny shouted quickly, opening the cart that had just been wheeled in and pulling out bags and boxes of sinister looking equipment. The scene became a blur of jargon none of them understood, least of all Jareth.

"Heart rate is one-sixty and climbing fast"

"Give me atropine rapid IV push!"

"Atropine in. We have flatline!"

"An amp of epi now!"

"Epi in. She's in sinus but it's weak."

"BP still falling, fifty over Doppler."

"Give me a liter of point nine in a pressure bag. Run it in fast people, we've got to get this pressure up."

"What's happening?" Jasmine cried again, tears flowing freely down her face.

Toby put his arm around her. "I think it's almost over." He said sadly.

More alarms sounded. "She's in V-tach!"

"Charging to two hundred."

"We're charged."

"Stand clear!"

Jasmine jumped as her mothers body bounced on the table from the force of the electrical shock. The room was silent for a split second while they waited to see the effect.

"No change, still in V-tach. Charging to three hundred."

"Charged, ready to shock."

"Clear!"

Another jolt caused Sarah's limp body to jerk once again. Jasmine buried her face in Jareth's shoulder, sobbing wildly.

Up until this point Jareth had been frozen by his emotions. Pain, grief, guilt, so many things going through his mind at once that he was unable to move. Suddenly all these things were swept away by anger, sheer blind fury. Sarah could not die this way, surrounded by strangers, her body prodded and poked so unnaturally. So ignoble a fate was beneath her. She was, after all, the mother of the heirs to the High King of the Underground. More than that, she was his Queen, if only in his heart, and this fate was unacceptable.

Jareth knew he had to act quickly if he was to save her from it. He pulled Jasmine away from him, lifting her chin and looking into her eyes. "Do you trust me?" he asked her.

She hesitated for only a second, her mind numb and her heart shattered. Finally she nodded. "Yes Daddy."

"That's my girl." He said, kissing her forehead lightly. Then he gestured inside the room where the medical team was working feverishly and fruitlessly to save her mother. "When we're gone, make them forget. You'll know how."

He turned away toward the room, but Jasmine's voice stopped him. "Please don't leave me, Daddy." She cried, and his heart broke for the pain in her voice.

He looked back at her, his expression deadly serious. "I'll be back for you, little one, I swear it." With that he strode into the room, assuming his regal bearing like a cloak thrown around his shoulders. Even without his kingly attire, his presence was overwhelming. "Step aside!" he commanded, and although the room was filled with protests, no one defied him. The scene seemed to progress in slow motion as Jareth summoned a crystal and bent down to lift Sarah into his arms. He turned towards the door, his eyes meeting Jasmine's for a breathless moment, his gaze infused with love and encouragement, and then he dropped the crystal at his feet.

When the leftover tendrils of magic subsided, he and Sarah were gone, leaving behind an empty bed and a tangled mass of tubes and wires that were no longer attached to a patient. Everyone stared at the empty space in confusion, but already angry shouts were beginning. Jasmine wasted no time. She heard her grandfather demand to know what had just happened, Karen sobbing mournfully, and Toby trying desperately to calm them both down. She paid no attention to any of it, focusing her thoughts instead on a room full of crystals in a dimension she could not see. As she pulled one into existence she heard Karen gasp, but paid no heed. She closed her eyes, concentrating her will on what she wanted, and threw the orb into the room where her mother had almost died.

When she opened her eyes again, she was staring at an empty room. There were no doctors, no nurses, no machines, not even a bed. There was no indication at all that Sarah had ever been there. She heard Jenny's voice behind them and turned to find her addressing Robert. "Excuse me, sir. Do you have a family member here?"

"No." Jasmine interrupted quickly. "My mother was here, but she's been moved. We were just leaving." She smiled warmly at the nurse who had been so kind to her, and ushered Toby and her baffled grandparents out of the unit.

(&&&&&(&())(&&&&(&(&&&&&&((&(&&(&&&&&(&(&)(&

In the center of the Labyrinth, at its very heart, stood a small round building made of the purest marble, its glistening whiteness almost blinding when the sun hit it just right. On moonlit nights like this one it seemed to glow, as if by magic. The structure was comprised of a series of columns which granted the only privacy to the rooms within, as there were no walls and no windows.

Privacy was not an issue, however, for aside from Jareth and perhaps a few animals, no other living creature had ever stepped foot near it. It had been built by Jareth himself, using his magic and his bare hands. It was a place where he came to be alone with his thoughts. It was also where he came when he needed the council of his oldest advisor.

For what most in the Underground would never know was that the Labyrinth was more than just a place, more than just a gathering of power. It was a sentient entity, older than the oldest Fae, with an agenda of its own that no one knew or would dare to question. For reasons unknown even to Jareth, it had long ago chosen his family to rule its land and its children. Jareth was not fooled, for he knew he was more of a protector to the Labyrinth than a ruler. The idea that it might in some way obey him against its own will or judgment was laughable.

Yet to Jareth the entity at the center of the kingdom had also become a trusted friend, one he often turned to when he needed advice. AS he appeared in front of his marble hideaway, he prayed that today the Labyrinth had more than advice to give him.

At the center of the marble structure was a modest bedchamber where Jareth often slept when his visits ran long. It was here that Jareth brought Sarah, laying her to rest on a bed draped with soft white cotton. Moonlight bathed the room, setting everything in it alight with silver fire.

Jareth knelt beside the bed, the moonlight infusing him with gentle encouragement, and stilled his mind. He brushed away his cluttered thoughts and willed his inner voices to be still. Then he called out, a wordless plea that echoed throughout the physical and magical twists and turns of the Labyrinth. Immediately he had his answer, as the familiar and unearthly voice of the Labyrinth entered his mind. _Young Jareth, you have come to visit me at last old friend. But what's this, you're not alone?_

Jareth lifted his face to the air, his eyes wet with unshed tears. "I have come to ask a favor, Old One. This human is ill, and no one has been able to save her. Can you help her?"

_She is more than ill, My King, she is all but dead_. Jareth felt a stirring around him, knowing the shapeless entity was moving to take a closer look. _Of course, I should have known by the change in my magic. This is the Lady Sarah, is it not, the young one whom I allowed to defeat you?_

Under less grave circumstances Jareth would have laughed at the admission. He had always suspected that his Labyrinth had betrayed him that day. "It is as you say, Old One." He said. "I ask again, can you help her?"

_What is it that you want me to do Jareth?_ The Labyrinth asked. _What help are you asking for?_

Jareth let the tears flow freely. "I want you to save her, Old One. I want her to not die."

Jareth felt the air around him shift once more. _Everything dies eventually, old friend. Who can say that this is not her time?_ _And humans are so frail, their bodies fraught with illness. Perhaps it would be better to let her go now._

Jareth stood angrily, shouting into the air. "I say it is not time for her to go. I say it would not be better. She may be human, but she is more precious to me than any other living creature in this world or hers."

_Calm down, old friend, _the Labyrinth whispered into his mind, chuckling. _So it is as I knew it to be. We love her, you and I. You from the moment you first saw her, I from the moment she first stepped foot on my soil. No, Jareth, I will not let her die._

Jareth breathed a sigh of relief, and waited for his miracle. The room was silent, save for the soft rustling of the sheets. He saw no indication of magic, yet before his eyes Sarah seemed to be regaining her color. The dark circles under her eyes were disappearing. Within the space of seconds, she began to look once more like his Sarah, warm and vibrant.

_It is done, old friend,_ the Labyrinth whispered. And Jareth sobbed in relief, gathering the sleeping woman into his arms. _She will not die tonight, nor ever by any machinations of her own body._

Jareth looked up, this last statement catching his attention. "What have you done, Old One?" he asked.

_I did as you asked, my friend,_ the Labyrinth told him. _You asked my not to let her die. As it would be impossible for me to follow her for eternity keeping her alive, I granted her immortality._

"I didn't know you could do that." Jareth said honestly. He wondered not for the first time, just how powerful the Labyrinth was.

_There are many things I can do, yet generally choose not to,_ the Labyrinth said, as though reading his thoughts. Jareth chuckled. Of course it was reading his thoughts, that was one of its powers he did know about. _The Lady Sarah is special. I have always thought so. Her children are special too. Ryan will be a fine Goblin King_.

Jareth's head snapped up. "You know about the twins?" he demanded.

_I have known about them since before they were conceived, _the Labyrinth said_. I saw them in her future, and loved them before they were born_.

"If you knew, why did you never tell me?" Jareth asked.

_Because you would have gone back for them, you would have brought them all here, and I could not have protected them from the fate that awaited them_, the Labyrinth answered.

"What fate?" Jareth asked.

_Had they come here before the end of the war, they would have been murdered, all three of them. I saw this in The Lady Sarah's future as well,_ the Labyrinth explained._ I know your heart questions the decision you made to leave her, but perhaps it will help you to know that it saved her life, and the lives of her children._

Jareth held Sarah closer too him, feeling his guilt wash away. Now if only she would forgive him as quickly. _Don't worry, old friend, I will make sure that she understands_, the Labyrinth told him.

"Stop reading my mind." Jareth said, laughing freely for the first time years, and felt the air around him charged with the entity's silent amusement. "She's safe now?" he asked a moment later.

_For the time being_, the Labyrinth answered. _I cannot see all possible futures, and now that she is immortal, it is difficult to see any_. Ah, so there was some limitation to his power. _Not much_. Jareth growled and the Labyrinth chuckled in his mind, a low rumbling that felt like thunder at the base of his skull. Finally it spoke again. _I will allow her to awaken momentarily, but then she must sleep. Her body has not fully repaired itself, and she needs rest._

Immediately Jareth felt Sarah stir in his arms, and looked down to see her eyes opening. She blinked a few times as her eyes became accustomed to the moonlit darkness, and her mind cleared itself of the cobwebs her illness had caused. Finally her eyes widened with recognition as they focused on the face of the man who held her.

"Jareth?" she mouthed, her voice betraying her. She thought she must either be dreaming or dead. She tried to sit up, but his arms gently held her in place.

"Don't move, Sarah. You need your rest." She had hardly dared to believe it was really him until she heard his voice. The soft accent seemed to drift through her mind and into her heart, pulling at blessed memories she thought long buried. She saw tears in his eyes, felt tears spilling down her own face.

"What happened?" she whispered as her voice slowly returned.

"You almost died." He told her, wiping the tears from her cheek. "But everything will be fine now." She took a mental inventory of her body, remembering the terrible pain that had sent her crashing to the floor.

"My heart..." she began, but he pressed a finger to her lips.

"Is healing." He finished. "But you need to rest, and I have to leave for a little while." Her eyes widened in panic, and she began to struggle in his arms, but once again he held her firmly. "Only for a little while love, and you'll be asleep the whole time."

These words didn't comfort her. The last time she had fallen asleep in his arms, she woke up alone, and he had never come back. "Why do you have to go?" she cried.

Jareth smiled gently. "Because I promised our daughter I would be back for her, and apparently I yet have a son to meet." He said.

Sarah paled. "You've met Jasmine?" she asked, horrified that he had learned about the children from someone other than herself.

"Who do you think called me?" he smirked, and felt her relax in his arms. Her eyes closed and her breathing became rhythmic. He looked up, feeling the atmosphere shift again, as the Labyrinth's entity returned.

_I've made her sleep again_, it said. _She needs to rest. If it makes you feel better, I will bring her champions here to guard her._

"Her champions?" Jareth asked.

_The dwarf, the fox, and the creature. They were chosen by me to protect her once before,_ it answered.

Jareth smiled. "Of course, Old One. I think she would like that."

_It shall be done then, old friend_, the Labyrinth told him. _Go now, and see to the rest of your family. Return quickly, though, I can't run this world without you._

Jareth leaned down and kissed Sarah gently, remembering painfully the last time he had kissed her as she slept. Things would be different now; he would make sure of it. He started to leave, but at the last second thought better of it. He conjured a crystal and willed its form to change. It shimmered for a second before turning into a single red rose. He laid it down next to Sarah and whispered "Red means I love you." Without another word he disappeared.

A few seconds later three new figures occupied the space he had just left. They looked around in confusion at their new surroundings. When they saw each other they each smiled in confused delight. Then they heard a voice in their minds, a voice they had never heard before, drawing their attention to the purpose of their reunion. As one, they turned to stare at the figure on the bed, reverently walking towards it.

"My lady?" Sir Didymus said.

"Sawah!" Ludo cried.

Hoggle gasped, tears of joy in his eyes. "Little Missy!"

The voice spoke to them again, explaining that she was ill and that their King requested that they protect her while she recovered.

Didymus removed his hat and placed it solemnly over his heart. "I shall guard her with my life!" The others nodded in agreement as they settled down to watch over their heroine as she slept.

A/N: Wow, the reviews for this story have been awesome! Thank you one and all. As a reward I've given you yet another hellishly long chapter. Yes, yes, I know, I rock! Please don't be upset that I haven't introduced Ryan and Jareth yet. I'm just waiting for the right time. Besides, let's let Jareth get a handle on Jasmine before we throw Ryan into the mix. You know how volatile that boy can be!

Really, thank you all so much for the reviews, and keep them coming. They keep the gears in my brain spinning.


	6. Not Quite Human

Disclaimer: Still own nothing

Toby drove along the darkened highway eying his niece cautiously. He had expected to be bombarded with questions the moment he got in the car, if not from Jasmine then certainly from his parents. He had been prepared for it, braced for it. In fact, he had been practicing what he would say in his mind for quite some time now. But instead of questions he was faced with stony silence. He continued to watch Jasmine, occasionally glancing in the rearview mirror at his parents. No one seemed to have any intention of asking him anything.

Toby sighed. He could stand it no longer. "Doesn't anyone want to ask me what I know?" He asked, almost begging. The silence remained, but at least they were all looking at him now.

Finally Jasmine spoke. "So suddenly it's your place to tell us?" she asked icily. Ah, so that was how it was going to be. Fine, she could be angry with him if she liked. He had been loyal to his sister, and that's what mattered.

"Things are different now, Jas. You know that." He told her.

It was Jasmine's turn to sigh. She wasn't really angry with him; she just hadn't wanted to be the first to speak. And of course he was right. Things were very, very different. "Okay." She said finally. "Tell me what you know about my father."

Toby looked over at her and then back at the road. "Well, maybe you should tell me what you know about him first." He told her.

Jasmine tilted her head to the side and mused silently for a minute. "Come to think of it," she said, "I don't really know much more about him than I did before."

"But you know he's not…" Toby trailed off, glancing again at his parents in the rear view mirror. How would they take all of this?

"Human?" Jasmine finished for him. "No, he's Fae."

"You mean like in fairy tales?" Karen asked from the back seat.

"Something like that." Jasmine answered.

"That's ridiculous." Robert huffed, to which Jasmine summoned a crystal to her fingertips (she was doing it quite easily now, she realized happily) and caused it to glow a soft blue, illuminating her Grandfather's face.

"Really, Grandpa?" she asked. He stared at her silently for a moment before slumping back in his seat, mumbling under his breath. He was too tired, too confused, and had seen too much to argue, so resigned himself to the knowledge that his daughter had been impregnated by a fairy tale.

Jasmine sent the sphere away and continued. "He told me that he left Mother because other Fae might hurt her if they knew about her. Probably even have killed her. He had no idea she was pregnant."

"How can you know that for sure?" Karen asked.

Jasmine turned to look at her grandmother. "You didn't see his face when he realized who I was. I've never seen someone look so happy and so sad at the same time. There's just no way he knew."

"She's right." Toby agreed. "Sarah told me that she didn't even know yet when he left. He couldn't have known." In the back seat Robert looked up at his son and then nodded tersely. The thing that had upset him more than anything else about the situation had been the thought that Sarah and her children had been abandoned intentionally. He found himself more than a little comforted by this new information. "Is that all he told you?" Toby continued, addressing Jasmine.

"It's all he had time to tell me." She answered. "When he found out about Mom, all he could think about was getting to her."

Every one went quiet at the mention of Sarah and her illness. Silently, they each prayed that wherever Jareth had taken her she had found peace of one kind or another. They were all a little stunned when Toby broke the silence with laughter. "Obviously he had time for a little more than that." He said.

"What do you mean?" Jasmine asked.

Toby made a flicking motion with his wrist. "As far as I know, you weren't pulling crystals out of the air this morning."

Jasmine blushed. "Oh, that. Ye, I guess it's a Fae thing."

Toby shook his head. "Somehow I don't think they can all do that." At their questioning glances he decided perhaps he should get on with the rest of the story. He took a deep breath and began. "When I was little, Sarah had a story book called the Labyrinth. Do you remember it, Mom?"

"Do I?" Karen answered. "How could I forget? She used to spend hours at the park acting it out."

"Did you ever read it?" Toby asked her.

"Well, I skimmed through it. It wasn't really my kind of story. I remember there was some evil Goblin King that stole children and turned them into goblins or something." She answered him. "It used to bother me that Sarah was so hung up on the story. She seemed too old for fairy tales."

"Well," Toby said. "It wasn't exactly a fairy tale. "Parts of it were true."

Jasmine looked at him warily. "Which parts?" she asked.

"Well, it turns out there really was a Goblin King." Toby told her. "And while he wasn't evil exactly, and he didn't steal children, he did take children who were wished away. And the only way to get them back was solve his Labyrinth, which apparently no one ever did. No one except Sarah."

He stopped then, waiting for the storm to break loose. He wasn't disappointed. "What?" three voices asked in unison?

Toby smiled, beginning to enjoy the story. "You see, one night, when Sarah was fifteen, she was left alone to baby-sit me. Apparently I got dumped on her a lot, and I wasn't the easiest baby to take care of."

"You were a perfect baby!" Karen interjected, and Toby laughed again.

"For you, maybe. But not for a fifteen year old girl." He told her. "Anyway, as Sarah put it, she couldn't shut me up and in a fit of temper she said the words that would wish me away to the Goblin King. She didn't mean it of course, and never thought in a million years it would actually work anyway. Unfortunately it did, and the next thing she knew I had disappeared and the Goblin King himself showed up in my place. He gave her a choice. She could either attempt to solve the Labyrinth and win me back, or she could have all her dreams fulfilled. She chose to save me."

Karen gasped. "Oh my God!" she cried. "You were nearly turned into a goblin?"

Toby shook his head. "It turns out he never really turns wished away children into goblins; he just sends them to be raised by other humans in his kingdom."

"Oh." Karen said, only mildly comforted. She didn't know weather she should be angry or not, but she certainly was not happy.

"Anyway, the point is Sarah won. She got me back. Apparently she was the first person ever to solve the Labyrinth, and the Goblin King was intrigued by her. He sent us both back home, but he couldn't stop thinking about the remarkable human girl who had beaten his unbeatable game. So one night he came to visit her. And the next, and the next. Before long they became friends. Then later, when Sarah was older they became…more."

Jasmine's eyes grew wide. "Are you saying my father is the Goblin King?" she asked.

Toby smiled. "Yep."

"Then that makes me a…"

"Yep." Toby laughed.

Jasmine grinned wickedly. "Just wait 'til I tell Ryan." She said.

"You don't have anything over him." Toby chuckled. "His father's a king too."

"Yes, but I'm older. That makes me next in line for the throne." Jasmine giggled.

Through the stunned silence in the back seat Karen finally spoke. "So when exactly did Sarah tell you all of this?" she asked.

"She told me about the Labyrinth when I was eight, mainly because I never quite forgot it." Toby answered.

"How is that possible?" Karen wondered, "You couldn't have been more than a year old."

"I'm not sure how I remember it." Toby said, "But I do. They're vague memories, almost dreamlike, but they were enough to have made Sarah decide she should tell me the truth. It wasn't until I was fifteen, though, that she told me that Jareth was the father of the twins. And that was only because I figured it out."

"How?" Jasmine asked.

"I suppose I remembered Jareth so well that I recognized him in the two of you." Toby explained. "At least I think that's it. Everyone could see there was something special about the two of you. I was just the only one who had seen it before and could put a name to it."

Jasmine smiled. "So many things make sense now." She said.

Robert frowned. "I'm glad someone thinks so." He mumbled.

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The rest of the drive had been silent as Jasmine and her grandparents struggled to come to terms with what they had just learned. They were home now, sitting in Sarah's living room and staring at one another expectantly. Jasmine had made a pot of coffee and served it, all the way thinking _Do princesses drink coffee? Do they drink tea? Either way, I'm sure they don't make it themselves._ Her mind had been rambling that way for quite some time now, and she wished that something would happen to make her think about something else.

Finally Karen spoke, addressing her words to her mop headed son. "So let me get this straight. Sarah wished you away to the Goblin King, but won you back. Then the Goblin King fell in love with her, fathered her twins, but left because he was afraid his own people would kill her?"

"That's the terribly simplified version, yes." An accented voice said from the landing at the top of the stairs.

Jasmine stood and whirled around to see her father making his way down the stairs. _A King. A King. My father's a King (I'm a princess!) he's the Goblin King._ He certainly did look regal, descending the stairs with such grace it almost hurt to watch him. He had done away with the human street clothes he had donned to go to the hospital, and was now wearing tight satiny breeches that disappeared into the top of tall leather boots. His shirt was black as well, with loose sleeves and buttons that seemed only to come to the middle of his chest. Over this was a black leather vest with silver details, and a black frock coat embroidered with Celtic knots in intricate designs. Yep, he was a king, alright. How had she missed that before? Finally her mind latched onto the only other subject she could have gotten excited about just then. "Mother?" she asked hopefully.

"Is resting for now but sends her love." Jareth said smiling.

The atmosphere in the room lightened palpably as four people sighed in relief. Jasmine threw her arms around Jareth as he reached the bottom of the stairs, almost causing him to lose his balance. Blushing, she stepped back and did her best approximation of a curtsey, which is very difficult to do in blue jeans. Jareth laughed and pulled her lightly to her feet. "What was that?" he asked her, his eyes twinkling.

Jasmine looked down, blushing brighter than before. "It's just, I don't know what I'm supposed to do around you. I'm not even sure what I'm supposed to call you."

Jareth cupped her chin with his gloved fingers and lifted her face upwards. "You had no problem finding a name for me before." He reminded her, searching her eyes.

"Yes, but you didn't tell me you were a king." She answered quietly.

Jareth was silent for a moment, motionless. "Ah." He said finally, kissing her lightly on the forehead before letting go of her chin and looking towards the others in the room. "I see Toby has filled you in on a few things." When Toby nodded he turned back to his daughter. "I have never been one to demand formalities, especially from those I love. There are protocols, of course, that must be adhered to at state functions and the like, and you will have plenty of time to learn these." She was looking at him with shimmering eyes. He hadn't missed the way they flared when he said the phrase 'those I love.' Once again he was filled with deep regret at having missed so much time with the child. He sighed. "I would like it if in the meantime I could still just be Daddy." She smiled and hugged him again, ferociously, and he returned the embrace with all of his heart.

"You're talking like you expect her to go back to your world with you." Robert said.

Jareth turned to face his daughter's grandfather. _Why must this man be so difficult? _"Of course I do. She is my daughter and heir; she belongs in the Underground with me."

Jareth watched as a host of emotions marched across the other man's face, and braced himself for the reply. When it came, it was much nicer than he was expecting. No doubt Robert had edited his true thoughts heavily. "Don't you think Sarah will have something to say about that?" He asked.

Jareth chuckled, and began lazily pacing at the foot of the stairs. "Sarah would not be Sarah if she didn't have something to say about everything." He answered, and everyone in the room nodded in agreement. "But I don't see why she would have a problem with it. I have every intention of making her my Queen, so of course she will want her children nearby."

"Your Queen? How is it that she's safe to live there with you now, when seventeen years ago you feared for her life?" Robert asked.

Jareth stopped his pacing and fixed Robert with a pointed gaze. "Because most of those who would have wished her harm are now dead, and the few that remain would never dare to harm the wife of their High King."

"High King?" Jasmine gasped. "I thought you were the Goblin King?"

Robert ignored this and asked what he considered to be a far more important question. "Why are so many people suddenly dead?"

Jareth absently brushed his fingers against the scar on his forehead. He had never bothered to have it healed. It usually hid beneath his wild blonde hair, and it served him as a reminder of all that had been won and lost. "There is but one answer for both questions." He said. "War."

Jasmine's eyes grew large. "Is it still going on?" she asked.

"No, little one." He said, putting an arm around her protectively. "But it lasted long enough. Thirteen years is a long time to fight."

"What started it?" Karen asked.

"The High King wanted my Labyrinth, and demanded that I turn it over to him. When I refused, he declared me a traitor to the realm and attacked my kingdom. When it was all over I still had my Labyrinth, and he was dead. So I suppose I won."

"And now you're the High King." Karen said.

"Yes." Jareth affirmed.

"And that will make your world safe for Sarah?" Robert asked him.

Jareth began to pace once more. "That," he said, "and the fact that she's not exactly human anymore."

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_Sarah was flying. She didn't know how, but she was. She was looking at the ground as it went by with no help from her feet. In fact, she wasn't sure she had feet. She should probably be panicking, but she wasn't. Looking around she realized that she was in the Labyrinth, or over it as the case may be. Its walls were pale and ghostly in the moonlight, and seemed more beautiful than she remembered. _

_Suddenly she was aware of another presence, something whose age was palpable. She had never felt the presence before, yet it seemed very familiar to her somehow. In her mind she heard a voice, and even without a face she knew it was smiling. 'Young Sarah,' it said. 'Welcome home.'_

'_Home?' she asked, though she couldn't deny the truth of it; she felt as though she was home. 'Am I dead?'_

_The voice laughed. 'Far from it, child.' It answered. _

'_Then why can't I see my body?' she asked._

'_Because your body is resting. Only your consciousness is out here. When your body has healed you may return to it. For now I thought we should have a talk.'_

'_Who are you?' Sarah wondered._

'_I am the Labyrinth.' The voice said simply, as though she should have known that already._

'_Ah.' Sarah replied. 'I almost died, though, didn't I?'_

'_Indeed you did. In fact, you would have died if Jareth had not brought you to me when he did.' The formless entity answered her._

'_You saved me then?' She asked._

'_I did.'_

'_I supposed I should thank you then.' Sarah said. 'But it doesn't explain why I'm flying around outside my body.'_

_The Labyrinth didn't answer right away, and Sarah had the feeling that it was thinking the problem over. When it finally did speak the answer was not terribly satisfying. 'I'm not sure why.' It said. 'I suppose it has something to do with your immortality.'_

'_Immortality?" Sarah sputtered._

'_Yes, in order to save you, I made you immortal.' It answered._

'_That seems a bit extreme.' She told it. 'Does that mean I'm a Fae like Jareth now?'_

'_No.' It answered. 'I don't have the ability to make you Fae.'_

'_Then what am I?' She said._

'_I'm not sure.' The Labyrinth told her. 'I think you may be like me.'_

_Sarah tried to hide her shock. 'And what are you?' she asked._

'_I don't know. I can't remember.' The Labyrinth answered._

_Sarah frowned. 'Well are there any others like you that we could ask?' _

'_I don't think so.' Came the reply._

_Sarah frowned again, and thought for a minute. 'Will I have magic like you?' she asked finally._

'_Probably.' The Labyrinth answered. 'But I'm not really sure.'_

'_You don't know much of anything, do you?' She asked._

'_I know many things.' The entity answered. 'You're just not asking the right questions.'_

_Sarah sighed, and the leaves of the hedges below her rustled in the breeze. 'Where have I heard that before?' She mused. _

_Sarah and the Labyrinth passed a few minutes in companionable silence, and Sarah was amazed to discover that she felt perfectly at ease with this strange entity. Finally it was the Labyrinth that spoke again. 'Are you angry with Jareth?' it asked._

_Sarah laughed. 'For leaving me alone to raise his children?' she replied. 'Why would I be?'_

'_Ah, sarcasm' The Labyrinth said. 'You should not be angry with him, Sarah, he loves you very much. He wanted you to be safe.'_

'_So he said.' Sarah grumbled. 'But I never really understood why I would be in so much danger here.'_

'_Whether you understood or not,' The Labyrinth said, 'you would have been. Both you and your children would have died here if Jareth had brought you home with him.'_

'_How do you know that?' Sarah asked._

'_I saw it in your future long ago when you were here the last time.' It told her._

'_You could see my future?' She asked._

'_Indeed.'_

'_Then why didn't you see what you would be turning me into?'_

"_Sarah, I have been in existence for countless thousands of years. What fun would my life be if I had all the answers?'_

A/N: I know, I know. This took too long! I'm sorry, but I hope you enjoy it. Please leave a contribution in the box.


	7. Like Father Like Son

Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth, or Moonage Daydream.

"Not human? What do you mean she's not human anymore?" Robert demanded.

Jareth scowled. Robert was entirely too much like his daughter, he decided, but with none of the redeeming qualities that Sarah possessed. "I mean she is no longer mortal. But perhaps you'll be better off asking her about it when next you see her. I'm sure I can't explain it."

Robert took a step closer, and Jareth could tell whatever he was about to say would not be pleasant, but Karen stopped him with a gentle hand to his shoulder. "Robert, the important thing is she's alive. Can't we worry about everything else later?" Robert glared at her for a second, but nodded and turned away. To Jareth she said "She does still look human, doesn't she?"

Jareth sighed and ran his fingers through his unruly hair. "See for yourself." He told her. Carelessly reaching into the air he pulled a crystal into existence. "Show me Sarah." He murmured to it, and its opaque center began to swirl and clear. He held it out on his fingertips and Karen gazed inside. The image it showed was of Sarah, curled peacefully on her side with a gentle smile on her lips. She was surrounded by soft blankets and fluffy pillows, and she looked entirely content. As they watched she stretched and yawned and rolled over, pulling one of the larger pillows into her arms as she did so.

Jasmine had never seen her mother look so peaceful. Usually her worry lines were present even in her sleep. Now she looked ten years younger. "That must be your bed." She said absently, thinking of the pillowcase upstairs in the Ziploc bag.

"It is." Jareth confirmed, knowing without asking what she meant. Sarah would most likely be angry with him when she woke up and came fully back to her senses. But in her sleep, at least, he knew she still loved him.

"She looks…happy." Karen agreed. "I don't remember the last time she looked so happy."

"About seventeen years ago." Robert stated, his gaze directed at Jareth.

Jareth ignored the other man and turned instead to Karen. "Has she really been so miserable?" he asked.

"Not miserable, really." She told him. "Just…lonely, I suppose. I always felt she was keeping too many things to herself, now I understand why. She had no one she could confide in. I'm sure not even Toby was privy to everything." She spared a disapproving glance at her son and continued. "God help any man that tried to get close to her. She cut him off at the knees."

Jareth had been staring at Sarah in the crystal, watching her sleep. He had summoned the image to comfort her family, not realizing how comforted he would be himself. At Karen's words he looked up at the woman, fresh guilt washing over him, and released the crystal into the air. "Of course." He said. "She was raising Fae royalty. How could she have expected a human to understand that?"

Karen recognized the pain in his eyes and laid a comforting hand on his. "No, Jareth, that wasn't it at all. Sarah never stopped loving you. She never let another man in her life because she was holding that spot open for you. She was waiting for you to come back to her." Pain flashed in his mismatched eyes at these words, but she squeezed his hand. "Don't look so guilty." She told him. "You're here, aren't you?"

"Yes, and almost too bloody late." Robert said before Jareth could respond.

Karen whirled on her husband. "Oh, for heaven's sake, Robert!"

Jasmine stepped between her father and grandfather, attempting to defuse the situation. "Daddy, would you like some tea?" she asked, realizing how comical the question was under the circumstances.

Jareth and Robert continued to glare at each other for a few seconds, before Jareth looked down at his daughter's pleading eyes. "No, I'd like to meet my son now." He said. "Where is my wayward progeny?"

"Ye, where is Ryan?" Toby asked, "I left him here with you."

"Uh…" Jasmine faltered, "Well, he's playing with his band."

"What?" Robert roared. "He knew his mother could die any second and he ran off to play with his friends?"

Jasmine faced her grandfather with her chin in the air, meeting his outrage with defiance. "His exact words were 'I can't do anything to help her sitting around here.' He was right."

Jareth thought that if humans had the ability to snort fire, that is exactly what Robert Williams would be doing right now. It angered him to see such outrage directed at his children, but he held his temper. Barely. He put his hands on Jasmine's shoulders and turned her back to face him. "Will he be home soon?" he asked her.

Jasmine glanced at the clock. It was ten thirty now. Had she really only known her father for two hours? "Well, the club closes at two, so it will be a while yet." She told him.

"Two O'clock!" Robert yelled. "I can't believe your mother allows him to stay out that late!"

Jasmine faced her grandfather again. She didn't know why, but with her father behind her it seemed much easier to take his outbursts. "The word 'allow' implies that she knows about it. She doesn't. Or if she does, she chooses to pretend she doesn't, which is more likely." Looking back at her father, she added softly, "Mom and Ryan don't always get along."

"I can imagine." Jareth chuckled, though he was feeling the twinges of guilt once more. "Teenage Fae boys are notorious for being difficult." He looked at Karen and smirked. "If my mother is to be believed, we never grow out of it. If any human was up to the task of raising one, it was Sarah. Still, if he's anything like I was at that age, it's no wonder her poor heart gave out."

"And how were you at that age?" Karen asked.

"Volatile, sullen, angry at everyone about everything." He answered.

"Yep, that's Ryan all right." Jasmine said.

Jareth turned to his daughter and held out his hand. "Perhaps you better take me to him." He told her.

"Okay," she said, "But we have to fix you first." Jareth watched with amusement as Jasmine effortlessly plucked a crystal from the air. She closed her eyes and concentrated, then dropped the crystal at his feet. The Kingly attire she had so admired was replaced with the clothes he had worn to the hospital, and his hair was brushed down and slightly less out of control.

Jareth inspected himself and smiled proudly. "Nicely done, little one." He told her.

Jasmine grinned and held out her hand. "Shall we?" she said. He took her hand in his and she reached into the air to pull another crystal when Toby stopped her.

"Wait!" he said. "Shouldn't we drive? I mean, don't you think meeting his father will be enough of a shock without being magically transported home?"

"I was actually thinking we would walk home." Jasmine said. "It's not that far away. But if you'd like to drive there and meet us I suppose it would be alright." She looked at her father for confirmation and he nodded.

"If he's as much like me as it sounds like he is, we may need you to help calm him down anyway." Jareth said.

"I'm going too." Robert said. "I have a few things to say to my grandson."

Jareth leveled a cool gaze at Sarah's father. "No, you will wait here." He said.

"Like hell I will!" Robert told him.

Jareth had all but lost his patience. He crossed the distance between them and brought his face very close to Robert's. "I put up with your harsh words and harsher tone for a while because I thought perhaps I deserved it. I believe I have since redeemed myself. I put up with it a while longer for the sake of my daughter, but even that is wearing thin." All of this was said through clinched teeth, and Robert found himself shrinking away from the angry Fae. Jareth continued. "Make no mistake, Robert Williams, no matter what else I may be, I am a King, and have been for centuries before you first drew breath. Even my enemies speak to me with the respect my title deserves. I thank you for all you have done for Sarah, and for my children. But they are my children and their welfare is now my concern, not yours. Do we have an understanding?" Robert glowered angrily at Jareth, but nodded in agreement. "Good, in that case, Jasmine and I will be going. Toby, we will meet you there."

"Wait, where are we going?" Toby said, as Jasmine summoned a crystal.

"Stardust Cafe, on Seventeenth Street." She said, as she and Jareth disappeared."

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Loud and hot. Those were the first words to come to Jareth's mind as they appeared inside the Stardust Café. Jasmine hadn't bothered to find a quiet place to transport them to, figuring no one would really notice two more people in the crowd. She was right. She had transported them to the back of the club, near the bar. More than likely anyone back here that did notice their sudden entrance would be drunk, and no one would believe them. She was right about that too. Mostly, though, she had decided she really didn't care if they were seen.

That was fine with Jareth, who couldn't imagine anything causing more chaos in this place than there was already. He had been in more orderly battles. Quieter ones too. Through the din of what must surely be thousands of people talking at once, music could be heard. Jasmine took his hand and began weaving them through the crowd. The closer they got to their apparent destination, the louder the music became, and Jareth was amazed to hear what sounded like his own voice intermingled with the instruments.

As they finally made their way to the stage the music ended with a sudden clash, and the singer stepped closer to the edge, greeting the enthusiastic applause of his audience. To say Jareth was stunned would be an understatement. He had an idea that Ryan would resemble him based on the reactions of his grandparents, but what he saw before him was more than a resemblance. For a moment he wondered if he hadn't somehow reordered time in his youth and forgotten about it, but of course, that was impossible. The reality that this was his son standing before him, looking like him, sounding like him, even prowling across the stage like him, suddenly hit him like a freight train, and for a moment he forgot how to breath.

_My son…my son…my son…_the phrase repeated itself in his mind like a litany, and he became aware that his lips were moving silently as well. _My son, Sarah's son, our son._ Jasmine had been a shock, an unexpected but entirely pleasant surprise. Ryan was not a surprise, at least not anymore, and still he couldn't think clearly. He felt his hands shaking even as he struggled to regain his composure. He looked down at Jasmine, hoping for an anchor of reality to hold on to, but she was grinning wildly, obviously amused with his reaction. She squeezed his hand reassuringly and looked back toward her brother, who was now speaking.

"All right." He said with a bob of his head, and the crowd cheered. "We've got one more song for ya, and then we'll be taking a short break. I wanna dedicate this to my Mom, who's very sick right now and who probably won't ever know how much I love her." Ryan's voice broke slightly, but he recovered quickly. He picked up his guitar and hung the strap around his neck. Signaling to the band he strummed a single powerful chord before he began to sing, his voice strong and resonant:

_I'm an alligator, I'm a mama-papa coming for you  
I'm the space invader, I'll be a rock 'n' rollin' bitch for you  
Keep your mouth shut, you're squawking like a big monkey bird  
And I'm busting up my brains for the words_

_Keep your 'lectric eye on me babe  
Put your ray gun to my head  
Press your space face close to mine, love  
Freak out in a moonage daydream oh yeah!_

He continued to strum along with the tune, his face occasionally contorting with the words. Jareth struggled to understand the lyrics to the strange song, and even when he thought he knew what the words were, he didn't quite understand what they meant. Presently they were joined by Toby, who had pushed his way through the crowd to find them. It wasn't hard to locate them, as Jareth was the only one in the throng who wasn't dancing to the pulsating rhythm of the song. Leaning close to Jasmine Toby yelled "Did he just dedicate Moonage Daydream to your mother?"

Jasmine turned to face him, and to the surprise of both men she had tears in her eyes. "Ye." She said, wiping at her cheeks.

Toby looked at Ryan and then back at Jasmine. "I don't think I understand." He told her.

"When we were little, this was Mom's favorite song. She used to blare it in the car everywhere we went, and Ryan would sing along with her. It was their thing, I guess. She used to joke that when he was old enough to know what the words meant he couldn't sing it anymore."

As she spoke Ryan took the guitar off and began to dance along with the song.

_Don't fake it baby, lay the real thing on me  
The church of mad love, is such a holy place to be  
Snake me baby, make me know you really care  
Make me jump into the air_

Keep your 'lectric eye on me babe  
Put your ray gun to my head  
Press your space face close to mine, love  
Freak out in a moonage daydream oh yeah!

Jasmine laughed as her brother strutted with the song. He picked his guitar up and began to play again, a keening lead riff that set the crowd to cheering even before it was over. He sang the chorus one more time before the song wound down. To thunderous applause he took his guitar off once more and waved triumphantly before the spotlights dimmed and the house lights came back on.

He was making his way off the stage and Jasmine moved toward him, dragging Jareth behind her. He saw her and Toby and froze, instantly fearing the worst. Then he saw their smiles and was confused. Jasmine wrapped her arms around him and hugged him fiercely, and he laughed as he returned the embrace, though he didn't know what they were so happy about. "Mom?" he asked, over the noise of the crowd and the constant stream of people clapping him on the back as they walked by.

"She's gonna be okay." Jasmine told him.

"What? I thought there was no hope? What happened?" Ryan asked her. He was ecstatic, of course, but terribly confused.

"Your sister called in a little outside help." Toby said, motioning behind him. For the first time Ryan noticed the stranger that was with them. No, stranger was the wrong word. Ryan knew exactly who this was, there was absolutely no way it could be anyone else. They stared at each other, father and son, for the first time in their lives. Then Ryan turned and walked away.

Jasmine chased behind him, grabbing his arm. "Ryan, what the hell are you doing?"

Ryan wheeled on his sister, blue eyes icy beneath his pale hair. "No, Jasmine, what the hell are you doing? What the bloody FUCK were you thinking bringing him here? Did you think I would just skip on over and give him a hug?"

"I don't know what I thought." Jasmine yelled. "But I hoped you had learned to keep your mouth shut and not say the first nasty thing that came to mind."

Ryan's eyes flashed, and for a moment she saw a wildness there she had never seen before. Then Toby was between them. "Come on, kids, lets take this outside. We don't want the whole world watching you make a scene." He took them both by the elbows and led them out the side door of the club and into a deserted alleyway.

Jareth followed silently, as his mind ticked through a thousand possible scenarios for the next few minutes. He had only a few hours practice at being a parent, and so far with Jasmine it had been easy. Ryan was going to be more of a challenge, but Jareth liked challenges. More importantly, he liked Ryan. Any other reaction would have been disappointing from the son of the Goblin King. When Jareth smiled, Ryan noticed it.

Spinning to look his father in the eye Ryan shouted "What's so funny?"

"Absolutely nothing." Jareth said calmly, "And absolutely everything."

Ryan backed away, his eyes wide. Great, my father's crazy. "Why are you here?" he demanded.

Jareth began to pace, making a slow circle around his son, and Ryan got the distinct impression he was sizing him up. "Because your sister called me." He said finally, still prowling. "And because you both needed me."

Ryan clinched his fists. "You bastard. We've needed you for years, and so has our mother. Where were you then?"

Jareth stopped moving, scowling at his son. Ryan felt his resolve melting and forced himself to remain strong. "My absence from your lives was an unfortunate necessity, Ryan. I hope in time you will come to understand that, but for now I'd like you to come home so that further discussions can be had in private."

Ryan's face formed a haughty expression that matched Jareth's completely. "Come home with you?" He sneered. "I have no home with you. I have no life with you, I have nothing with you. You can't just waltz into my life from God knows where and start telling me what to do."

Jareth narrowed his eyes and when he spoke his voice was soft but commanding. "I am your father, and I can do just that. Now don't defy me Ryan." He knew this would get the boy's attention as nothing else had, and he wasn't disappointed. He saw the punch coming and could easily have avoided it, but he stood his ground as Ryan's fist connected squarely with his jaw. The blow elicited no reaction at all from the Goblin King, and Ryan stared at him wide eyed with shock. Even Jasmine and Toby were too shocked by what had just taken place to say anything.

Jareth absently raised his hand and wiped blood from his lip, then looked at the smear of red on his fingertips. Jasmine finally came out of her stupor, rounding on Ryan with flashing mismatched eyes. "You fucking asshole!" she screamed, shoving at his chest so hard he nearly fell down. "Why the fuck can't you just be normal? Why the fuck can't you just act like a human being for once?"

Before he could answer her they were both startled to hear Jareth laughing. "Because he's my son, and he's neither of those things." Jareth said smirking. "You know that. And by the way, that's no way for a princess to talk." Turning to Ryan he continued. "Do you feel better now, son?"

Ryan didn't know what to make of the strange man that looked and acted so much like himself. He wanted to hate him, but couldn't even bring himself to be angry anymore. It was as if every ounce of rage had melted when the punch had landed, and he was left with something new. Something like respect. He raised his chin, trying to hold on to some of his dignity. "I do." He said.

Jareth smiled, his mismatched eyes shining. "Good, then let's go home."

A/N: Woohoo, another update. The long awaited Ryan meets Jareth chapter. I hope it lived up to your expectations. The song Ryan sang was Moonage Daydream, an old old David Bowie song. I figured if he looked like a young Jareth, he would sound like a young David Bowie.

Thank you one and all for your reviews. I'm glad to know so many people came back to the story after waiting so long.

**Juliana:** Sorry you had to wait so long

**Cyber Keiko:** Get out of my head :P

**Solea:** Thank you, this was one of the nicest reviews I've ever gotten.

**LabyLvrPhx:** I'm glad you loved it.

**Sarsalot:** I pace a lot, so for some reason I make Jareth pace a lot.

**Jumping-jo:** God, you crack me up.

**Lady Aniveil: **Was this fast enough?

**Tellergirl:** Thank you.

**Sparkling Rain:** I'm glad, I'm glad, I'm glad.

Please continue to contribute to my ever growing big head.


	8. Birds of Prey

Disclaimer: Oh, if only I owned it all.

Allyndriel sat daintily on the stone wrought bench at the center of her private gardens. Her fire colored hair hung in shining locks against the pale shoulders that blossomed from her yellow sundress. She seemed to sparkle in the early morning sun, appearing nothing if not completely pure and innocent as the morning dew itself. It would be impossible to tell by looking at her that behind those shimmering blue eyes was a mind of pure evil, filled with dark thoughts and wicked schemes. To those who knew her, however, those eyes could be terrifying.

She was not in a good mood today. It was bad enough that her plans to conquer the Goblin King and his lands had fallen through, but now Orin was dead as well and she was forced to hide in her ancestral home, banished from the place where she had lived as consort to the king for the last seventy-five years.

He war had been over for nearly two months and for all of that time she had lived in fear that Jareth would remember her treachery and come for her. So far, he had not, and she wasn't sure if she was angrier that she was forced to live in fear of the man she so despised, or that she apparently was so unimportant to him that he had yet to think of her.

Jareth: that despicable, human loving, weak barbarian. It was the curse of the Fae people that they were forced to have dealings with the dirty humans that infested the world above. But Jareth not only took on the responsibility of those dealings, he almost seemed to enjoy it, proving what a backwards, disgusting thing he truly was. To think, she had almost been forced to marry him. Her own father had offered her to him as a bargaining chip long ago. And the pig had refused! He thought he was too good for her! The thought of him made her sick to her stomach.

Searching for something to occupy her wandering thoughts, the banished would be Queen set her sights on a small fairy. No bigger than a hummingbird, the diminutive creature had inadvertently wandered into the garden, and now flitted by and lit itself on the thorny stem of a rose. It sat, preening its wings in the sunlight, oblivious to beautiful woman that watched it. Allyndriel stared in fascination as it shook a rosebud, showering it's tiny body with dew. Without thought or conscience Allyndriel brought her hand up and swatted the tiny fairy to the ground. Its limp body fell at her feet, and she absently crushed it beneath one dainty slipper. "Nasty little things." She muttered.

Valerent had observed this display from the path that led to the garden. His stomach tightened in fear, and in loathing of himself for allowing this woman to affect him so. Steadfastly he straightened himself, taking care to lift his chin and at least attempt to seem unintimidated. The simple truth was that after five minutes in Allyndriel's presence, all he truly wanted to do was run away and hide. Still, she had been the consort to his King, and as such deserved his loyalty and respect.

"Ah, Valerent." She said, without turning to face him, and her voice sent shivers down his spine. "What news have you brought me of our new _King_?" This last word was said with such hatred and malice that the atmosphere around her seemed to darken as she spoke it. Finally she turned towards the old councilor, her face an inscrutable mask.

"He has gone absent, My Lady." Valerent answered, bowing low before the beautiful woman. "He left several hours ago, and no one knows where he has gone. The Elf Queen believes he was summoned to the World Above, but he has never been gone so long to retrieve a wished away child."

Allyndriel leaned back, one arm behind her to support her and the other idly tapping her knee. "This is interesting news, Valerent, but I don't suppose there is any hope that he won't come back."

"No." Valerent said, eyeing her cautiously. "It is my belief that he has gone away to think of a suitable replacement for the Goblin Kingdom."

"I see." Allyndriel said. "And what of that particular decision. Do we have any idea what his thoughts are yet?"

"He is being very stubborn about it, My Lady. But both Saren and myself have made it clear to him that a replacement must be found."

Allyndriel stood, idly plucking at rose petals. "Perhaps we could work this to our advantage, Valerent." She said darkly. "Who do we have loyal to us that might be forwarded into position?"

Valerent thought on this. "I'm not sure, My Lady, but certainly there is someone who could at least be bought."

Allyndriel smiled. "Imagine what we could do if we had control of the new Goblin King. It would be as though we had won the war anyway! We would have control of the Labyrinth, and Jareth would be powerless to stop us from taking back the High Throne." She began to pace the small ellipse of her garden enclave, her dark schemes taking over in her mind. "Surely the High Court would back us."

"King Jareth has done away with the High Court, My Lady." Valerent informed her.

Allyndriel's eyes snapped up and clouded darkly. "Done away with it?" She demanded. "Our barbaric King seeks to hoard power, then, does he?"

"He claims that he will form a new system of government." Valerent sneered as he continued. "Equality of the Underground peoples, or some rubbish."

Allyndriel laughed, an unpleasant, grating sound that made Valerent want to cover his ears. "Equality? Equality for whom? Surely he doesn't think to lump the Trolls and Humans in with the Fae?"

"I believe that is precisely what he means to do, My Lady." Valerent informed.

Allyndriel scowled. "Then the sooner we set our plans into motion, the better it will be for everyone." She said. She turned back to her roses, seeming to forget that Valerent was there. When he made no move to leave she spun around to face him, her face contorted in anger. "Why are you still there?" She screeched. "Find me a ringer to put on Jareth's beloved throne!"

The sudden outburst caught Valerent off guard, and he nearly stumbled in his haste to leave the garden. "Yes, My Lady." He mumbled, bowing again halfheartedly as he fled her oppressive presence.

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They walked in silence to the car, and as Toby unlocked it Jareth spoke to his daughter. "You and Toby go on ahead. Ryan and I will meet you there."Jasmine looked worriedly at her brother, who seemed just as uncomfortable with the idea as she. Seeing the look on her face Jareth pulled her into a comforting embrace. "We'll be fine, little one. Don't worry." Jasmine nodded silently and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before getting in the car.

Ryan waited for them to drive away before he spoke. "Well Jasmine certainly seems to have taken to you."

Jareth turned to face his son. "Does that bother you?" he asked. Ryan simply shrugged and began walking towards home. Jareth fell into step beside him and the two walked in silence for a while. It was Jareth who finally broke the silence. "I understand why you did it." He said cryptically.

Ryan glanced at him sideways. "Why I did what?" he asked.

"Why you punched me." Jareth elaborated. "And I don't blame you."

Ryan put his hand over his heart and pretended to swoon in relief. "Oh, I'm so glad." He said, his voice heavy with sarcasm. Jareth chuckled, but said nothing. As they continued to walk in silence Ryan felt the disgusting urge to apologize. He fought it as best he could before finally giving in. "Look, I'm sorry I hit, you, Okay?" He began, "I don't know what came over me."

"There is no need to apologize, Ryan." Jareth told him. "I told you I understood. Besides, I baited you into it."

Ryan stopped in his tracks and turned to his father. "What do you mean you baited me?" he demanded. He could feel his blood beginning to boil all over again, and he cursed himself for being so predictable.

"It wasn't hard." Jareth told him. "You are enough like me that I knew exactly what to say. I knew if we were ever going to be able to have a civil conversation you would have to work out a few frustrations first."

Ryan growled under his breath. He didn't like being played, but he knew his father was right. "So that's how you would have handled the situation is it?" He asked, beginning to walk again.

"Certainly." Jareth answered. "When I was fifteen."

"I'm sixteen." Ryan told him, and Jareth nodded.

"Yes, I know."

At those words Ryan began forming the most wicked response he could think of until he heard his father laughing softly beside him. Instead he sighed. "Are you doing it again?" he asked.

"You're very easy." Jareth answered.

Ryan stopped again, and turning to face Jareth became very serious. "Okay, so if we're so much alike, can you tell me why I always seem to say the worst possible thing at the worst possible time and hurt everyone around me?" Jareth frowned at the pain in the boy's eyes, and knew he was thinking of Sarah. _We are indeed very much alike._

He was silent for a moment, staring off into the distance, remembering times that seemed lost in the hazy past, although really for him they had not been that long ago. When he finally spoke his voice was thick, a fact not lost on the boy before him. "The night I realized I was in love with your mother, I was furious with myself for allowing that to happen. I was so furious that I spend the better part of an hour yelling at her for things that had happened years before and weren't really her fault in the first place. Then I left."

His mind wandered the misty depths of memory, and his own harsh words came back to haunt him. _'Stupid, selfish, pig headed girl. This all could have been avoided if you had just taken your dreams and let me have your brother_.' He shut his eyes tightly at the pain those memories invoked, as well as the thought of Sarah's broken heart worn so visibly on her sleeve. He had left her crying on her bed, just turned away from her let her think he hated her, all because he was afraid to admit he loved her. "What happened after that?" Ryan asked him, pulling him from his painful memories.

"I went back to her the next night, of course." Jareth said. "Her face was puffy and her eyes were red and I knew she had been crying all day. Oh, how I hated myself. I wouldn't have blamed her if she had thrown me out and never let me back into her life." Ryan nodded. _Oh yes, this is all very familiar._

"Why did she?" Ryan asked, and Jareth was amused to hear only honest curiosity in the boy's voice, and not the veiled insult that might have been there only a few minutes ago.

Jareth smiled wistfully. "Because she knew me well enough by then to know I meant it when I said I was sorry, because she loved me, and because she was always a better person that I am. She could see the good in anyone, even me."

Ryan shrugged. "You don't seem that bad to me." He said grudgingly, and Jareth knew just how much it had taken for him to say it.

"Well, you've only known me for thirty minutes, and you've already hit me once. Besides, you haven't even seen me when I bad yet." Jareth told him, a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "I think you might enjoy it."

It was meant to be a joke, but Ryan seemed to sober at the words. "Are you in the Mob?" he asked suddenly, remembering his theory from earlier in the evening.

Jareth had to search through what he knew of Aboveground human culture before he understood the question. "An organized criminal, you mean?" he asked, and Ryan scowled at his odd choice of phrasing. "No, why do you ask?"

Ryan hesitated before answering. "In the letter you wrote to Mom before you left you said that you couldn't take her Underground with you. I thought maybe you meant you were hiding from the law.

Jareth frowned. "By my honor, when we get back I'm going to find that letter and burn it before anyone else reads it." He fumed, and Ryan couldn't help laughing at the sudden outburst. Jareth turned an upraised eyebrow to his son. "No, I am not in the 'Mob.'" Jareth finally answered, his lip curled with obvious distaste, "Though I suppose you could say I was running from the law, at least where Sarah was concerned." He added.

Ryan frowned and did some quick math in his head. When he was satisfied that he hadn't meant what it sounded like he had meant, he asked the next logical question. "And now?"

"Now I am the law." Jareth said cryptically.

Before Ryan could ask what he meant three figures stepped out of the shadows to block their path. "Well if it isn't Kelly High's favorite little bastard." The obvious ring leader said, carelessly tossing a cigarette but to the ground. "Isn't it past your bedtime, little guy?"

Ryan groaned. Jack, Billy, and Craig were the school bullies, which of course meant they were the three biggest, meanest, and stupidest guys in the school. They had been giving Ryan a hard time all of his life, and he was pretty used to them by now. Still, the last thing he needed tonight was for them to show up in front of his long lost father. "Funny, guys." He told them, trying to look calm. "Don't you have some poor stray dog to torture?"

Craig stepped closer, he face nearly touching Ryan's, and sneered. "Why torture doggies when we can torture you, Williams?"

At the implied threat Jareth took a step towards them and Craig seemed to notice him for the first time. "The hell?" he said, turning his attention to Jareth. "Step off, geezer, this ain't nothin' to do with you."

Jareth stood his ground, and his mismatched eyes flashed menacingly. "If it involves Ryan, it has everything to do with me." He said.

Ryan turned to Jareth. "It's okay, Dad, I can handle this." He whispered. Unfortunately he hadn't whispered low enough.

"Dad?" Craig exclaimed, an ugly gleam in his eyes. Turning to his two companions he said "Did you hear that boys? Williams finally found his long lost Daddy!" The three of them laughed raucously before turning back to face Ryan. "Is Daddy here to knock your mommy up and run away again, Williams?"

Craig never saw what hit him. He was suddenly on the ground with an intensely angry Ryan Williams standing over him. He was momentarily shocked; Ryan had never even seemed to get angry at their teasing before, this was something new. His shock was replaced quickly by rage, however. "Oh, you're gonna pay for that, Williams." He said, and pulled a switchblade from his jacket pocket." His companions grabbed Ryan on either side as he stood to face him, the knife held menacingly between them.

"I would reconsider if I were you." Jareth said, walking lazily behind him. Craig spun around, waving the knife in Jareth's face.

"I thought I told you to step off, old man." He said, and to his horror, Jareth smiled. It was the most frightening thing he had ever seen. Jareth raised his hand and quick as lightening grabbed the wrist of the hand that held the knife; grabbed it and began to squeeze. Craig screamed and dropped the knife on the ground, but Jareth didn't let go. Jack and Billy let go of Ryan and ran to their friend's aid but Jareth lifted his other hand and motioned for them to stop. Much to everyone's surprise, they did, frozen in place.

Turning his attention back to Craig he squeezed harder, causing the boy to moan. "Were you never taught to kneel before royalty, boy?" he growled, and watched as the bully fell to his knees in pain. "You have insulted the honor of a King, and threatened the life of a Prince. Where I come from that is punishable by death." He told him.

"Please." Craig begged. "Please let me go." Jareth maintained his hold on the boy for several more seconds, conveying with his eyes how very serious he was, before finally releasing him. Craig stood up, stumbling backwards as he did so. With one last glance at Ryan he turned and ran as fast as he could, his newly freed companions close on his heels.

Jareth bent down and picked up the discarded knife. He tossed it absently into the air where it disappeared. When he turned around his very confused offspring was staring at him.

Ryan had at least eight thousand questions going through his mind, and couldn't seem to find the words to ask any of them. Finally a very simple one formed. "What the HELL was that?" he asked.

Jareth smiled wickedly. "That, my boy, was me being bad."

Ryan had no idea what to say. He stared blankly for a moment, then exclaimed "Well whatever it was, it ROCKED! But you know that's going to be all over the school by Monday."

Jareth shrugged, absently brushing at his clothes. "It doesn't matter. By Monday you won't be here anymore."

Ryan raised a quizzical eyebrow and put his hands on his hips, making him look more like his father than he probably would have liked. "Oh really?" he asked. "And just were will I be?"

Jareth gave up on the awful human clothes and decided he didn't care about fitting in anymore. He summoned a crystal and dropped it, and when the magic dissipated he was every inch the Fey King. Turning his attention back to his now shell-shocked son he answered "In the Underground with me, fulfilling your birthright."

He began walking towards Sarah's house once more, then decided he was tired of walking as well. He turned around to find that Ryan hadn't moved. "Son?" he said. "Are you well?"

Ryan just stared at him. As if things weren't weird enough already! He had never been so confused in all his life, yet he was inexplicably excited. For some unknown reason he suddenly felt as though all the missing pieces were fitting together. Of course, they weren't in any kind of order that made sense, but it was okay. For the first time in his life he felt like everything would make sense eventually. He looked at his father and smiled. "I'm fine." He said, and he really truly was.

"Good lad." Jareth said, his heart beating wildly. He had not missed the sudden flash of acceptance in the boy's eyes. "What is your favorite bird?"

Ryan blinked. Then he stared. Then he blinked again. _What the…?_ "Um…Owls?" he said, more confused than ever.

Jareth smiled. He was beginning to really enjoy fatherhood. "Good then." He said, summoning a crystal. "Let's go home." He threw the crystal and with a rush of air the High King and the Goblin King disappeared into the night sky.

A/N: Oh, wouldn't it be wicked if I ended it there? But fear not, there is still much more to come. We've barely touched on the Jareth/Sarah goodness. I want to thank all my wonderful reviewers. You guys have been awesome!

**Julianna:** I hope this answers at least a couple questions.

**Atsuibelulah**: Ooh, which part made you nervous?

**Sarsalot:** Glad you approved;)

**Cyber Keiko:** Another update, just for you.

**Anianka:** Oh look, another bust up!

Zyn1213: Thanks for the praise!

**Jumping-jo**: I fear it would be dangerous to let your mum read your reviews.

**TheShadowCat:** Sorry, but you'll have to wait a little longer for the Sarah/Jareth goodness.

**Celebwen Telcontar**: I'm glad you liked it.

**Solea:** Thanks for the support. Beans?

**Lady Aniviel:** It's one of my favorite Bowie songs!

**LabyLvrPhx:** Neither did I til I wrote it.

**Katie: **I'm glad you enjoy my stories.

**Nyllewell**: Wow, that is one of the nicest things anyone has ever said about my work. Thank you!

Wow, so many reviews it nearly took another page just for the shout outs. Please continue to fill my little box with yummy good ness.


	9. Thunderstorms

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Labyrinth.

Jasmine was pacing the living room floor like a caged tiger, as Toby and her Grandparents sat calmly on the couch watching her. It had been nearly an hour since they had left Ryan and Jareth at the club. The walk home was only about thirty minutes, they should have been home by now. "Oh, I hope they're okay." She grumbled for the thirteenth time in as many minutes.

Toby stood and crossed the distance between them and stopped her pacing with an outstretched arm. Turning her to look at him he said "You know they're just talking. They have a lot to talk about, and Jareth knew that. I though you trusted your father?"

Jasmine gazed at her uncle's big blue eyes, so full of sincerity, then turned her gaze away. "I do trust him." She said softly. "It's Ryan I wouldn't trust as far as I could throw him. At least not about this."

Toby had in mind to ask her just what he thought Ryan could do to Jareth when a crash and a loud squawking from outside caught their attention. Jasmine pulled away and opened the front door, while Toby, Karen and Robert gathered behind her. In the oak tree that stood next to their front walk was the largest, most beautiful white owl she had ever seen. It gazed lazily in her direction, ruffling its perfect white feathers and cocking its head at her in a strangely familiar way.

The commotion on the ground pulled her attention away, and she was startled to see another owl, not as large as the first but just as beautiful, lying on its back at the base of the tree. It was squawking loudly and flapping its wings, and Jasmine could almost imagine a string of curses coming from it. For some reason she wanted to laugh, but she suppressed that urge. Karen pushed her way past, saying "Oh, the poor thing! It's hurt."

The Owl in the tree hopped from its perch and as it neared the ground transformed fluidly into Jareth's graceful form. Karen gasped, but Jareth merely smiled his cocky smile. "I assure you, there is nothing hurt but his pride." He said, and the fallen owl squawked louder. "My, my, what a colorful vocabulary you have, son." Jareth added, and with a flip of his wrist the remaining owl transformed into a very unhappy looking teenage replica of the man standing over him.

"Son of a…" he began, but Jareth cut him off.

"Language, my boy, there are ladies present." He said, gesturing behind him. Jasmine had shocked (and amused, truth be told) him earlier with her display of colorful epithets, so he wasn't really that concerned about her sensitivities. It was just so much fun to torment the boy.

Ryan growled. "Baiting me again, _Dad_?" The last word was snarled, but there was no venom behind it.

"Not at all." Jareth told him, bending down to offer a hand up to his son. "I had no idea you would miss the tree branch and bounce off the tree." At this he suppressed his own urge to laugh, sensing it might not be taken well. "We shall certainly have to work on your landings."

Jasmine again held back a giggle as Toby whispered in her ear "See, I told you they'd be fine."

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_'So, you've existed for thousands of years?' Sarah asked, lazily causing the leaves of the trees beneath her to tremble._

_'I have.' The Labyrinth responded._

_'And you don't know what you are.' Sarah stated, for the sake of clarity._

_'I no longer remember.'_

_'But you're the last of your kind.' Again, a simple statement._

_'I believe that I am. I know of no others like myself, not anymore.' The Labyrinth answered sadly._

_'Except for me?' Sarah asked._

_The Labyrinth was quiet, as though this progression of logic had not yet occurred to it. 'Yes, that's true.' It answered finally, its voice almost cheerful._

_Sarah laughed. 'You hadn't thought of that already?' She asked._

_'I had not.' The Labyrinth responded. 'My mind was preoccupied with other things.' It was quiet again for a moment before continuing. 'I have been alone for so long that the idea of not being alone seems outside the realm of reason.'_

_Sarah sighed, and the trees bent sadly below her. 'I know how you feel.' She said._

_The Labyrinth caught the implications of her words and its tone turned serious. 'Sarah, you really must forgive him.'_

_'Oh really?' she said. If she had had a face, she would have done her best to look disinterested. 'And why must I?' she asked._

_Again the Labyrinth took its time before answering. 'I believe in your world there is a saying 'Behind every strong man is a stronger woman.''_

_Sarah laughed. 'Something like that.' She said._

_'Jareth is a good king, but with you behind him he will be a great king.'_

_'He's done fine without me so far.' Sarah said, pretending not to be intrigued by the turn the conversation had taken._

_'As Goblin King, yes. But he has a new role now, and he cannot fulfill the destiny that lies at the end of his path without you by his side.'_

_'New role?' Sarah asked, abandoning her feigned disinterest. 'Is he no longer the Goblin King, then?' The thought seemed alien and almost frightening to her. _

_Again there was heavy silence. When the Labyrinth spoke again, the words had the weight of prophesy behind them. 'Even now he is laying that burden on young Ryan.'_

_Sarah would have gasped if she had had lungs to do so. She was growing tired of discussing such important things with no body to express her emotions through. 'My son!' She raged, and the wind around her began to lift. 'He's made my son the Goblin King?'_

_'His son, Sarah. His heir.'_

_Sarah was furious. Beyond furious. How dare he? What in heaven or hell would possess him to think he had the right to do such a thing? She began moving faster over the labyrinth, flying so swiftly that the gleaming walls below her became a blur. Around her a thunderstorm began to brew. Without warning the clear night sky clouded over, and lighting flashed across the horizon, bringing earthshaking claps of thunder in its wake. The wind howled in outrage and fury as pain pelted the land below._

_In Jareth's sanctuary at the center of the Labyrinth, three figures watched with worried faces as their sleeping charge thrashed about violently in her slumber, as though in the grips of a terrible nightmare. They gazed in wonder as three locks of her hair originating at her forehead began to change before their eyes, the amber waves fading to purest silver. Suddenly, Sarah sat up on the bed and cried out wordlessly. Her eyelids flew open, revealing silvery orbs in place of the familiar green eyes. As suddenly as she opened them, they closed again softly. She lay back into the bed, sleep claiming her again, as outside the wind and the rain settled down._

_High above Sarah's raging mind began to calm and once again she drifted slowly above the land. Beside her, she felt her unseen companion chuckle softly. 'Drama Queen.' It chided._

_Sarah sighed. 'I can't help it if I'm angry.' She said, surveying the damage below from the brief but violent storm. 'Did I do all that?' she asked, appalled, and wondering how many fierys were now homeless because of her temper tantrum._

_'You'll learn to control it, eventually.' The Labyrinth reassured her. 'I think.' It added._

_'Super.' She mumbled. She was silent again for a while before returning to the previous subject. 'What gives him the right to walk back into my life and claim my children?' she asked, and was annoyed to realize that she was no longer angry, only extremely tired._

_'I promised Jareth I would try to make you understand.' Was the answer she received. 'I have tried, but I think you will only be satisfied if you hear the words from Jareth's own lips.'_

_At these words Sarah felt herself bristling with anticipation. As angry as she wanted to be, as furious as she told herself she deserved to be, the truth was that she ached with the simple need to smell his scent again. Did she want to see him again? That was a stupid question. For seventeen years she had wanted nothing else. Would she forgive him? In her heart she knew she already had. That didn't mean she would make things easy on him, though. 'Fine.' She said finally. 'Send me to him.'_

_'Like this, little one?' the Labyrinth laughed._

_'Okay.' Sarah amended. 'Send e back to my body, and then send me to him.'_

_'You don't need me for that. You know where your body is, go to it.'_

_Sarah huffed (or would have. Damn, I never realized how useful my body was.) She had flown so far, so fast during her bout of temper that she wasn't sure where she was anymore. The sun was coming up over the land and as she looked out into the distance she caught sight of the Goblin Castle rising like a jewel out of the winding walls of the labyrinth. A soft moan escaped her nonexistent lips as she was filled with memories of the first time she saw the Castle beyond the Goblin City. Memories of Jareth. It was a moan of longing, and when the entity beside her laughed again, she scowled invisibly at it._

_Again, she glanced around the labyrinth, this time feeling for the connection to her body. Suddenly she found it, like a homing beacon calling out to her. 'There it is!' she cried._

_'Very good.' The Labyrinth told her. 'Now go!' She began to fly once more, faster than before, allowing herself to enjoy the feel of absolute freedom. Finally she reached the Sanctuary and descended into it seeing for the first time the guardians that watched over her. She smiled at their vigilant, if somewhat sleepy eyed, forms._

_Hearing the unformed question in her mind, the Labyrinth told her 'Young Jareth was hesitant to leave you unprotected, even here.'_

_'You know, you could make a living in my world as a PR guy.' She said, confused silence the only reply. Slowly she began to reenter her body, feeling consciousness and physical sensation merge. Her eyes fluttered open, and three sets of eyes stared back at her._

"My Lady!" Didymus spoke first. "Art thou truly awake?"

"Verily, brave Sir Knight." She responded with a smile, her voice hoarse.

Hoggle and Ludo didn't speak, but tackled her in a pair of conjoined hugs. "Where've ya been, Missy?" Hoggle said finally. "We've been missin ya!"

Sarah enthusiastically returned the embrace. "I know, Hoggle, I've missed you too." The four of them talked for several minutes, exchanging pleasantries and tears of joy, until Sarah found an opening to continue her self appointed quest. "I have to go for a while." She told them. "I need to speak with Jareth."

"But, uh, Sarah?" Hoggle protested. "We was told to watch over yas til His Majesty comes back."

Without warning the voice returned, startling everyone but Sarah. _'It's all right, my children_.' The Voice said. _'You have served your King well. It is time for the Lady Sarah to begin down the path that leads to her destiny.'_

Sarah scowled at the invisible speaker. '_Now who's being dramatic?_' she asked silently, and was answered with a short soundless chuckle. Her frown softened and became a genuine smile. "Thank you, old one." She said aloud, unknowingly adopting Jareth's nickname for the entity. "Now how do I get home?"

'_I believe you have but to wish it, Young Sarah_.' The Labyrinth answered.

"Are you sure it will work?" she asked hesitantly.

'_No_.'

"Wonderful" she sighed. "Well, here goes." She closed her eyes, silently wishing for home. When she opened them she was in an unfamiliar room in an unfamiliar place. No, that wasn't true, she had been here before, long ago. She took a closer look at her surroundings, and realized with a start that she was in Jareth's throne room. 'What the hell? How is this in any way home?'

'You have to be more specific. Home is more than just the place where you sleep. This is what your heart considers home.'

Sarah was more than a little shocked that she could still communicate with the Labyrinth, but she hid it well. 'Jareth's throne room?' she thought.

'Jareth's castle. The place where Jareth sleeps.' It elaborated, and she felt her throat tighten with emotion. The throne room was empty, and the early morning sun streamed through the windows to illuminate cleaner surroundings than she remembered.

Suddenly she heard voiced drifting into the room, and she hid herself in a corner. "So His Majesty has been gone all night without so much as a word to anyone." A grating male voice was saying.

"That is the gist of the situation, yes." A female voice replied. As the speakers came into view, Sarah saw that these words had been spoken by a beautiful woman, tall and slender, with silver hair and pointed ears. _An elf_.

"And there has been no further decision made as to his replacement as Goblin King?" Said her companion, an older man whose near translucent skin told Sarah he was Fae. The elf woman sighed.

"No, Valerent, not that I'm aware of." The conversation held Sarah's rapt attention. She found herself wondering again why Jareth needed a replacement as Goblin King. She had the feeling that something very important had happened, and was still happening, in Jareth's world.

Valerent seemed to be deep in thought. "Perhaps we should prepare for the event that he's not coming back." He said slowly.

The elf woman wheeled on him, exasperation evident on her beautiful features. "Really, Valerent! Jareth has only been gone one night. Perhaps you could give him a little more time before you start plotting your coup." This last was said with plain disgust.

"Do you question my loyalty, Queen Saren?" Valerent asked, his expression hurt. "Why, High King Jareth has no more loyal servant than me, I assure you." Sarah heard the exchange, absently picking up the phrase 'High King Jareth'. What caught her attention more was the phrase 'Queen Saren'. '_Queen Saren? Jareth has a Queen?' _Her heart was pounding, and she thought she might throw up right there on the polished stone floor.

'_Hush, child. Saren is the Elf Queen. A family friend, nothing more_.' The Labyrinth's voice echoed through her mind, the words soothing her. There was no way to disguise that reaction; it has been jealousy, pure and simple.

'_I still love him_.' She sighed inwardly, as much relieved by the fact as she was annoyed.

'_Of course you do_.' The Labyrinth said, and Sarah growled.

'_I wasn't talking to you that time_.'

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Saren regarded Valerent with thinly veiled disgust. She didn't trust him, not in the least. Jareth gave too much credit to the old Fae, but she could feel the duplicity in him. She gave him a thin, tight smile. "Of course not, Valerent, you have made it quite clear where your loyalties lie." She told him. A flash of understanding lit his eyes and she cursed herself for showing her hand. It was unseemly to give so much of herself away, and unlike her. Perhaps she had spent too much time in the Goblin Kingdom; she was beginning let her emotions rule her. She lifted her chin, regaining her composure. "That will be all, Valerent." She said, and watched with a small bit of satisfaction as the old Fae turned and walked away.

Alone at last she leaned tiredly against the cold stone seat at its center. She ran her hands lovingly over the intricate carvings; the symbols and glyphs that represented the great house of Baaleron. _Oh Seth, this should be your throne now._ She laid her head dreamily on her arms and closed her eyes, and in her mind she could see him once more. If she concentrated she could almost hear his voice whispering her name. She felt a glistening tear roll down her cheek, and pulled herself from her selfish musings. Seth was gone, there was nothing to be done for it now. She steadied herself and turned to leave the throne room when a noise caught her attention. She turned, one slender hand unconsciously grasping the hilt of the sword at her side. Long years of training and longer years of war had made her wary.

Her keen eyes studied the darkened corner of the room where the noise had come from, and caught a glimpse of movement. Cautiously moving forward she called out "Who's there?" There was movement again as the shape before her stood. Saren was astonished to see a woman before her, long dark hair falling in waves above pale shoulders. Her back was to the sun, making it impossible to see her face.

"I'm sorry." The woman said. "I didn't mean to disturb you, I was just leaving." The figure seemed to hesitate, and Saren boldly moved closer.

"Wait!" she said, and moved forward until she could see her face. Her heart thudded in her chest as the features became visible. Her eyes widened and without thinking she reached up to touch the face she knew so well. "By the Gods!" She gasped. "You're Sarah, aren't you?"

"How do you know my name?" The woman asked, and Saren blushed. She really wasn't supposed to know anything about her.

"Seth." She said softly. "Seth showed me your portrait, and told me all about you. Did you really beat the Labyrinth?"

Sarah's mind raced as she tried to recall the name Seth. "Jareth's younger brother?" she asked aloud and the young Elf Queen nodded.

"He was my intended." Saren told her, sad eyes cast down upon the floor.

"Was?" Sarah asked softly. The feeling that something very big had happened was back, and there was an unspoken dread following on its heels.

Saren looked up at her, studying her. "He was lost to us." She said. "Killed in the war for the Labyrinth."

The dread was coursing through her now, filling her veins with ice. "War?" she breathed, and the elf nodded, still watching her strangely. Then she turned away and walked towards a large window, gesturing towards the land below. Sarah gasped again. Beneath her was the labyrinth, beautiful and shining in the golden sunlight, but surrounded by mounds that Sarah knew could only be graves. They stretched out past the horizon, possibly thousands of them, some with markers, some without. Sarah steadied herself against the solid stone of the windowsill and let out a shaky breath. When had this happened? She felt something wet dripping onto her hands and realized she was crying silently.

She turned to find that Saren too was staring at the scene sadly, although her eyes were dry. Perhaps she had cried too many tears already. Sarah's heart ached for her, for Jareth, for Seth, whom she had never met, for the thousands of people buried out there in the dust, for the thousands more who mourned them. She shed her silent tears for them, and outside the window a cool mist of rain began to fall. "What happened here?" she whispered, and turned to find Saren staring at her.

"I'm sorry." Saren said, looking away. "It's just…I was given to believe you were human."

Sarah smiled. "What makes you think I'm not?" she asked.

"Humans don't make it rain when they cry." The Elf Queen said, and Sarah merely nodded, not bothering to go into the explanations. Why bother? She couldn't answer any questions anyway.

"You mentioned a portrait?" She said, changing the subject.

"Yes." Saren said, "His Majesty has a portrait in his chambers, painted by his own hand. Very few have ever seen it. I was certainly never meant to, but Seth showed it to me. It's a painting of you. He told Seth all about the beautiful human girl he had loved and lost, and Seth told me."

"I'm a little surprised he told anyone about me." Sarah said.

"Only Seth." Saren said. "They were very close. I never knew Jareth before he met you, but Seth said he was a different person then."

Sarah smiled gently. '_This was no accident, was it Old One_?'

'_A little perspective can be a good thing_.'

A/N: Wow, there were so many reviews that last round!

Anon: Hmmm….wonder what your name means Anyway, here ya go.

Moonjava: Thanks.

LabyLvrPhx: Thank you too.

Juliana: It was one of my favorite lines too.

Alteon77: I strive for my writing to be 100 corn free.

Anianka: Would you believe I got that idea sitting in a Sushi bar?

Solea: I never intended to end it there, it just sounded like an ending when I wrote it. I thought it might scare some people.

Sarsalot: You really like my baddie? Great, I worried over her.

Theshadowcat: Its coming, its coming (no pun intended.)

LadyAnieval: Neither can I, they will be so much more fun to write.

Atsuibelulah: You're excused! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

Jazzy021: Thank you!

Jumping-jo: I'm glad you like the story, and I'm sorry if I offended you. Twas never my intention.

To everyone: I'm sorry it took so long to get this chapter out. I've been working a lot, and this chapter just seemed to go on and on anyway. I'm trying to get everyone together now, but I have loose ends to tie up before I can move the story any more forward. Plus, I'm trying to establish the relationship between Sarah and the Labyrinth. That's going to be important later. I'm very excited by people's responses to my Labyrinth character. I hope you still enjoy him after all of this.

Thanks to everyone who's reading, please drop me a note!


	10. Sometimes the Way Forward is the Way Bac...

Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth

A/N: Because I love you guys, and because I knew you were dying for some J/S goodness, I give you another update. There are flashbacks at the end, and they're very quick. Hopefully if you know they're coming they won't be confusing, but I apologize if they still are.

* * *

Sarah turned from the windowsill and strolled lazily to the throne at the center of the room. When she reached it she sat down absently, an action which Saren herself would never have dared to take. Sarah leaned back in the stone seat lazily, her legs crossed with one hand resting on her knee and the other arm draped over across the arm of the seat. Saren should have been appalled by the familiarity of the gesture, and yet she found herself inexplicably soothed by it. In fact, everything about the strange not human woman set her at ease. For the first time in months she was beginning to feel like everything would be alright. "Does Jareth know you're here?" she asked.

"I very much doubt it." Came the cryptic reply. "Tell me, is this war the reason Jareth must find someone to take his place as Goblin King?"

Saren nodded and regarded the other woman. She knew she should probably not tell her anything, especially if King Jareth didn't know she was here. As she looked into her eyes though, she was met with a flash of quicksilver that quickly submerged itself within the mossy green depths, and her misgivings seem to melt away with it. "The war ended when Jareth defeated the High King's armies and won the High Throne for himself."

_'So Jareth is the High King now, is he?'_ Sarah thought. '_And how is it that I'm taking all of this so calmly?_'

'_You're acting like the Queen you are._' The Labyrinth's voice brushed through her mind.

'_I am no Queen, Old One_.' She thought brusquely.

'_No?_' the Labyrinth chuckled. '_Then why are you so comfortable in Jareth's throne_.'

Sarah hadn't realized until then that she was, and while her face remained stoic her thoughts were chaotic. '_Oh good lord, Saren must think I'm insane!_'

'_On the contrary, she finds your presence soothing. It's a common affliction amongst our kind, I'm afraid. Given enough time and not enough discouragement, she'll come to think of you as a God_.'

'_What?_' Sarah's mind screamed, but with a soft chiming laughter her connection to the Labyrinth was lost. The entire silent conversation had taken place in a heartbeat, and the only outward sign of it was a slight tightening of the smile on Sarah's face. "But Jareth can't rule two kingdoms at once." Sarah stated, returning to the conversation.

"Precisely." Saren confirmed. "But he's being stubborn. He doesn't want the Goblin Kingdom to leave the Baaleron Dynasty, and as he's the last of the Baalerons, it does present a bit of a problem."

_Baaleron_. There was a name she didn't have to dig too far to remember. She had once gotten in trouble in Chemistry for doodling '_Mrs. Sarah Baaleron_' over and over again in her experiment log. What a child she had been. A stupid, naïve child. The momentary flash of anger that rose faded quickly when she thought about those words, however: _the last of the Baalerons_. How lonely he must have been these last long years, and how excited he must have been to learn he had an heir to give his throne to. To think she had been so furious with him.

'_See_.' The now familiar voice rustled in her mind. '_Perspective_.'

'_Shut up_.' She bit, and was met with that annoying laughter again. For an ageless disembodied spirit of a maze, he was way too damn cheerful. Then she added '_Old One, can I trust this woman?_'

'_She has fought by Jareth's side throughout this war. She has risked her life for him countless times. I believe she has earned his trust, and yours_.'

'_Remind me to send her a card._' To Saren she said "Imagine, Jareth being stubborn." This was said with a smile, but Saren nodded solemnly. Sarah stood, placing her hand on the other woman's shoulder. "I understand you've been through a lot, Saren. Don't worry yourself about this any longer. I believe the problem has handled itself."

"But how?" Saren asked. "The King is not even in our realm. He left yesterday to answer a summons and has not yet returned. Truth be told, I'm as worried about that as I am about the other."

"Yet they are not unrelated." Sarah said. "The summons he answered was my daughter." She waited for the flash of understanding that she knew would come. When Saren's eyes widened she smiled. "Yes, the House of Baaleron continues." She confirmed.

"Jareth has a daughter?" Saren sighed. "Why did he not mention this before?"

"I'm sure it was even more of a shock to him than it is to you." Sarah laughed. "As was his son."

"A son as well?" Saren smiled, unable to hide her glee. Jareth, a father; the thought was absolutely astounding. Seth would have been beside himself. "You're right, this does take care of the Goblin Kingdom very nicely. But why have they not yet returned?"

Sarah sighed. "If I know my son, he's not making things very easy." She said.

"Ah." Saren nodded with complete understanding. "Then he truly is a Baaleron."

* * *

"I said, I DON'T WANT TO BE A GOBLIN KING!" Ryan shouted at his father, and Jareth ran his hands through is unruly hair in exasperation. He looked around at the audience that was staring at him expectantly and tossed a crystal into the air, transporting Ryan and himself to Sarah's bedroom.

"Why not?" he asked.

"A thousand reasons." Ryan growled, and gestured around the room. "And that's just one of them. An hour ago my mother was dying and I had no father. Now you waltz into my life, tell me you're the Magical Fairy King of Goblin Land, and you don't know what the hell my mother is anymore? What part of that is supposed to get me hot and bothered?"

Jareth clenched his teeth to keep from shouting. "I'm Fae, not Fairy." He ground out. "As are you. As for the rest, it's regretful that we didn't have more time to get to know each other before this came up, but you are my heir and the last of the Baalerons, and the Goblin Kingdom needs a ruler."

"I'm not the last." Ryan said, pointing towards the door, presumably indicating Jasmine. "She's older anyway! Why can't she do it?"

"It is precisely because she's older that she can't. Jasmine will be the heir to the High Throne." Jareth told him tersely.

"So can't she be the Goblin Queen until you die or ascend or fade away or whatever the hell it is fairy's do?"

Jareth clenched his fists and closed his eyes, willing himself to calm down. When his anger resided he opened his mismatched eyes again and studied his son. Beneath the icy blue fire of Ryan's gaze he saw the shimmer of mirth. Shaking his head he sat wearily on the bed. "Is this revenge for the tree?" he asked.

Ryan looked at him for a minute before deciding it was safe to answer. "Maybe." He conceded. "A little."

Jareth couldn't help but laugh. He patted the bed beside him, motioning for Ryan to sit. When he did Jareth spoke, choosing his words carefully. "Son, I know I'm expecting a lot from you. But you must understand the position you are in. You are royalty, descended from an ancient and noble house. You are the last in a long line Kings to a land that no other family has ever been strong enough rule. I realize it's a great responsibility to lay on your shoulders on such short notice, but you won't bear this burden alone. I'll be beside you all the way."

Ryan laid back on the bed, his arms splayed helplessly above his head. "And what about my life here?" he said.

"Which part?" Jareth questioned.

"School, the rest of my family, my friends, my band." Ryan listed.

"I don't think you're going to miss school that much." Jareth smirked, and Ryan laughed. That had been a freebie. "Your family you can see anytime, perhaps they'll even join us when the Underground is safe for humans. If the boys we met on the street are a sampling of your friends, then I daresay you're better off without them. As for your band…." Jareth stopped here. He understood that this was the most important thing his son had in this world.

"What did you think of my band?" Ryan asked suddenly.

"Your music was strange, but quite enjoyable once I got used to it. I thought you were quite talented." Jareth answered honestly.

"You liked us then?" Ryan asked.

"Very much so." Jareth told him. "I was quite proud of you."

Ryan sighed. "When do we leave?" he asked, sitting up again.

Jareth blinked. "Just that simply?" he asked.

"I'm sorry." Ryan grinned. "Was that too easy? I could start shouting again."

Jareth laughed. "No, no. That's fine. But what changed your mind?"

Ryan stood. "There was never anything to change, I knew I would go. But I couldn't just give up without a fight. Besides, what you just said about the Underground being safe for humans…that made me think. You have important work to do, and I want to be a part of it."

Jareth smiled. "Good lad." He said, standing to put an arm around his son. "Was that all?"

"Well…" Ryan began, hesitant to give too much of himself away. "What you said about my band…I only started playing guitar as a way to lash out at 'my father'. Not you." He amended, "But the nameless guy, the one I thought had abandoned me. That just seems silly now. And when you said you were proud of me…."

Jareth recognized how difficult an admission this was, and spared him further embarrassment. Through a lump in his own throat he said "I am proud of you, for much more than you realize. You've managed to get by in a world you were never meant for, under circumstances that would have broken lesser men. I couldn't be more proud of a son."

Ryan smirked. "Okay, okay, I said I'd be your Goblin King. Please, no more of this sappy shit."

Jareth laughed, and father and son headed for the door. "Where did you and Jasmine learn to talk like that?" Jareth asked.

"Have you ever heard Mom when she really gets mad?" Ryan told him.

"Oh…" Jareth said. "That might be my fault." They were laughing as they made their way down the stairs, ignoring the amazed faces that greeted them.

* * *

Sarah had taken leave of Saren, promising that she would see her again soon. She had also left her with a warning not to tell anyone else what they had talked about, especially Valerent. She was gratified to learn that Saren didn't trust him any more than she did, and had no intention of divulging anything to him. They parted with a friendly hug, and Sarah had disappeared.

She rematerialized inside a very familiar room, but not the one she was expecting. '_This is still not home_.' She whispered silently.

'_Isn't it? You grew up here_.' The Labyrinth replied. Sarah sighed, looking around the room that had remained untouched since she had moved out sixteen years ago. How could so many memories reside in such a small space?

'_Why am I here?_' she asked.

'_Sometimes the way forward is the way back_.'

Sarah sat resignedly on the bed, closing her eyes and letting the memories wash over her in waves. In her mind she was fifteen again. She could smell the strawberry shampoo as she climbed into bed with wet hair. It was a week after she had defeated the labyrinth, and everything was back to normal. Too normal. After seeing the Underground, her life seemed just plain boring. Until that night.

_Lightening flashed in what had been a cloudless sky moments ago. The windows blew open in the darkness of her room, and a familiar figure with wild blonde hair stood at the foot of her bed. _

_'Don't be afraid, Sarah.'_

_'Do I look afraid?' A smirk._

_'No…Why aren't you? I want to understand you'_

&&&

Countless hours of conversation went by in her mind in the space of seconds. In her mind's eye she relived the strange metamorphosis of their relationship; bitter rivals to closest friends.

_'It's your birthday, Sarah. You should be with your friends.'_

_'I am with a friend.'_

_A smile, and her heart skipped a beat._

Was that the first time? She could see now that it was. In that moment came the spark that ignited her love for him.

&&&

'_Jareth, why are you staring at me like that?' No answer, but soft lips were pressed to her own. Her body exploded with joy and desire. He pulled away and she whimpered in protest._

'_Sarah, I think I'm in love with you.'_

&&&

_He was in her bed, beside her, on top of her, she was drowning in him. His hands moved skillfully, making her feel things she had never thought possible, all the while repeating 'I love you Sarah, I love you Sarah.' The phrase became a prayer, whispered between soft kisses. He stopped to ask if she was sure, and she had answered with tears in her eyes. He took her then, gently, and she knew at that moment that no other man would ever touch her. She was his and only his for the rest of her life. She told him as much, gasping the words into his neck, restraining herself from screaming his name. She had fallen asleep cradled in his arms, the first of many times._

&&&

Sarah opened her eyes, gasping at the intensity of the memory. '_There weren't only good memories here, you know_.' She thought. '_What about the day I found his note on my pillow? What about all the times I woke up gagging and barely made it to the bathroom, with no one to comfort me and my father looking at me like I was tainted? What about all the times I called to him, begged him to come to me, and he ignored me?'_ There were tears in her eyes, but she knew the Labyrinth's plan was working. She was beginning to understand.

'_If you feel those memories are important, share them with him. He wants to hear them. But don't forget the others_.' The Labyrinth replied. '_Call him, Sarah. He will come this time_.'

Sarah wiped the tears from her eyes. "Jareth." She whispered. "Jareth, I need you." She had said those words so many times with no response that she was completely unprepared when she heard his voice in the stillness.

"I'm here, Sarah."

* * *

A/N: There it is! And they're finally together. Time for shoutouts:

Anianka: Actually, I got the idea for the knife fight in the darkened street at a Sushi Bar. Don't ask me why, lol.

Dancin Ryo Oh Oki: Two will be fine. Thank you!

Jumpin-jo: I'm not sure if Ryan is the crying type. We'll have to see where the muse takes me

LadyAnieval: Thank you! That means a lot.

TheShadowCat: More of the 'evil badness' in the next chapter.

Nyllewell: Lol, I'm gone, babe!

Solea: Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Atsuibelulah: A little more Ryan/Jareth there for ya!

Jazzy021: Don't we all….

Sarsalot: The Labyrinth as a character is really beginning to write itself. I think that makes it smug, lol. I'm glad you enjoy it.

Please, please, more reviews. Its mothers day, after all.


	11. Reunited And it Feels So Good

Disclaimer: I do not own the Labyrinth

* * *

He had heard her summons and taken leave of his children and their family without a word. It was as if time had stopped and he existed only for her. He knew that if she was awake enough to call to him, she was aware enough to remember her anger. This would be no half asleep reunion with one foot in dream land. He prepared himself for an all out confrontation.

When he reached her, he looked around in surprise at the place she had chosen for their reunion. They had shared so much in these four walls, and for a moment he found himself bombarded with the same memories she had relived only seconds ago, ending with the crushing pain of kissing her for what he thought would be the last time, and leaving her to wake up without him. That memory, augmented by the knowledge that his children were growing inside her at the time, that he had left her there to face that burden alone, seemed to knock the wind out of him. He shut his eyes tightly until he had gained control of himself, and then opened them again to gaze at her.

"You came." She said softly, and the disbelief in the words stung him to the core. How many countless times had she called to him, pleaded for him, only to be greeted by silence? Had she called to him as she knelt retching from the morning sickness? Had she screamed his name as the labor pains had wracked her tiny body? He knew that she had, he had felt the anguish in her voice, and had done nothing, not even looked in on her. This realization brought fresh waves of shame and guilt.

He took a hesitant step towards her. "Oh, Sarah…I…." he hesitated. What could he say that could make her understand? "I wanted to come every time you called me. It broke my heart not to come to you." He stopped. The words were hollow and not half what she deserved.

For seventeen years Sarah had thought about what she would say to Jareth if she ever got the chance to speak to him again. She had always pictured herself slapping him, screaming at him for hurting her so badly. Those angry thoughts had begun to fade, though, as the Labyrinth had shown her what he had been through since he had left her. Now as she looked at him, sadder and more broken than she ever could have imagined him, the last shards of her anger fell away and were replaced by and intense longing to comfort him. Still, the stubborn part of her mind insisted, she owed it to herself not to let him off the hook so easily.

"Do you have any idea what I've been through?" she said coldly, forcing her face to remain hard as she spoke. "Do you have any idea what my life has been like since you abandoned me?" His mismatched eyes shimmered with pain and she instantly regretted her words. _Gods, what am I doing? I'm acting like Ryan_. Before she could say anything else he turned away from her, crossing the room until he stood staring out of her bedroom window.

"I can only imagine how hard it was for you, Sarah." He said softly, staring out at the snow covered ground. "I don't know how to make you understand that it was for your own good."

Sarah's remorse vanished at the sound of those words. She was sick of them. "For my own good?" She growled, and her green eyes glinted with silver. Outside the wind began to pick up, moaning through the bare branches of the tree outside her window. "I swear if I hear that phrase one more time I'll scream. How was it for my own good to leave me here alone and pregnant and scared? How did that help me Jareth?"

Jareth wheeled at that, his eyes flashing, and he moved towards her until their faces were almost touching, grasping her firmly by her upper arms. "At least you were alive!" He thundered. He wanted to shake her like a child until he got through to her, but he restrained himself. "If I had taken you back with me they would have killed you and the children. They either would have murdered you outright or you would have become three more casualties in that damnable war, but one way or another they would have found a way to take you from me!" The edge in his voice softened to what was almost a sob as he reached the end of his words, and he raised his gloved hand to stroke her cheek. He smiled as he noticed for the first time the silver streaks in her hair, and the sparks of silver that were fading from her eyes as her anger cooled.

She had wanted to be angry for a little longer, just long enough to satisfy her sense of justice, but his words had carried an undeniable sadness that she couldn't deny. And then he was near her, so close to her she could feel his breath on her skin; so close she could smell him. Suddenly nothing mattered anymore except that he was there with his hand against her cheek in that old familiar way, in this room where they had fallen in love and where their children had been conceived. She had wanted to be angry a while longer, instead she threw her arms around him and buried her face in his chest, shedding tears that had been seventeen years in the making.

"I'm sorry, Jareth." She cried, her voice muffled against his chest. "I'm so sorry."

He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly. He closed his eyes and laid his head on top of hers, vowing silently to never let her stray too far from his reach again. "Shh…" he said, running his fingers through her long tresses. "What do you have to be sorry for, my little Sarah?"

"For being selfish." She said, pulling away from him so that she could look into his eyes. "I have no right to be angry with you when you were just trying to protect me. You're the one who's been through Hell."

He removed his gloves and placed his hands on either side of her face. "Every moment without you was Hell, Sarah." He whispered.

His words stirred feeling inside her that she had buried long ago, and suddenly nothing else in the universe mattered except that he was with her. She took one of his hands in her own and brought it to her lips, slowly kissing each fingertip. The feel of her lips on his skin sent shivers of fire and longing down his spine, and he gasped as his body responded in kind. Without another word he pulled her to him and covered her lips with his own, the years forgotten as her lips parted and he tasted the sweetness he though lost to him forever.

Sarah moaned as Jareth broke the kiss, pulling back to look at her. Her cheeks were flushed and her lips reddened. Her eyes were closed, and when she opened them flecks of silver were dancing beneath her heavy lids. He smiled, wondering how it was possible that she was even more beautiful than before. "I missed you, Sarah." He whispered.

She responded by nuzzling her face into his neck, kissing the sensitive skin of his throat. "I missed you too." She murmured, raising her hand to his chest and stroking it in light circles that left trails of fire behind. She pressed closer to him, smiling against his skin when she felt the evidence of his desire pressed between them. Her hand traveled lower, its destination clear, but he caught her wrist and forced her to look at him His need for her was stronger than anything he had ever felt, and he knew she wanted him too, yet he didn't want there to be any regrets.

"I want you, Sarah." He told her. "But I want you forever. I don't want to do this if I can never have you again."

"Jareth…." She whispered, her voice barely audible, and closed her eyes. "Promise me you'll never leave my side again, and you can have me whenever you want."

His heart began to pound and the images her words elicited and his body urged him to continue what he had started, but he wanted to be sure. "Then you'll come Underground with me?" he asked her. "You'll rule beside me?"

She slowly opened her eyes again, revealing orbs of smoldering silver, and as she did so all the candles in the room suddenly leapt to life. "Where else could I possibly go?" She asked him, a smile playing at her lips.

He stared at her for a moment as fresh wonder swept through him at the magnificent woman standing before him. She was still his Sarah, but now she was something more than that. She wasn't human, wasn't fae, she was no longer any creature he had ever seen or could put a name to. His last rational thought was that she had become something akin to a goddess. Then his mind shut down and his body took over as he lifted her in his arms and carried her to the bed, intent on worshiping her properly.

* * *

Valerent approached the Allyndriel's chambers cautiously, fear coursing through his veins. He knew his news would be unwelcome, and he was terrified that she would take her frustrations out on him. He knew how cruel she could be when she was angry, he had seen it first hand on more than one occasion. Still, he was her only means of gaining information about the new King, and this thought gave him courage. Steadying himself, he rapped soundly at her door.

"Come in." She called, and he began cowing even before he opened the door. She was sitting in front of the vanity mirror, brushing her long blonde hair. "One thousand strokes every day." She said, looking at him from the mirror. "It takes a great deal of time and patience."

"Two qualities you possess in spades, My Lady." Valerent said, hating the sound of his own voice. "As well as great beauty."

Allyndriel smiled at his words, and he hoped it would be enough to save him when she heard what he had to tell her. "Have you found my ringer yet, Valerent?" she asked.

Valerent braced himself for the storm. "No, My Lady. I come with ill news."

Allyndriel turned around on her stool, regarding the old fae cautiously. "Let's have it, then." She said coldly, and Valerent clenched his fists to keep his hands from trembling.

"King Jareth has already found his replacement as Goblin King, My Lady." He told her.

Allyndriel continued to watch him, absently bringing the brush back to her hair. "So who has he found, Valerent? Perhaps this person may still be controlled?"

"Regrettably, My Lady, that is doubtful. It appears King Jareth has a son." He said, steeling himself for the inevitable reaction. He wasn't disappointed.

"What?" Allyndriel roared, standing up to tower over the old councilman. "Why did you not tell me about this son?"

Valerent cowered against the wall. "I didn't know, My Lady!" he cried. "No one knew, not even the King himself!"

Allyndriel through her hairbrush across the room. "Then where was this little brat if no one knew he existed?" she cried.

"He was living Aboveground, with his mother and sister." Valerent said, grateful she had thus far taken out her anger on inanimate objects.

"And is this sister also Jareth's child?" Allyndriel asked.

"They are twins, My Lady." Valerent informed her.

"Well isn't that just handy!" Allyndriel yelled, picking up a jar of cream from her vanity and throwing it across the room, where it joined the hairbrush on the floor. "And why was the mother Aboveground? I've heard Jareth can be cruel, but what did he do to make the mother of his children go live among the humans?"

"Their mother _is_ human, My Lady." Valerent said, his lips curling in disgust. He already hated Jareth, but to know that the High King had sullied himself with a human woman, had bred with her no less, was despicable to him.

Allyndriel moved closer to him, looking down at him warily. "I'm curious, Valerent, how did you come by this bit of information?"

Valerent looked up at her in surprise. He hadn't expected her to ask him that. "Well, My Lady, I overheard Queen Saren talking to someone, and I went to investigate. It turned out to be the mother of the King's children, and it was from her that I heard all of this."

Allyndriel's eyes narrowed. "Saren…is that elf bitch still sniffing at Jareth's heels?" She asked no one in particular. "No matter." She said, turning her attention back to Valerent with an inexplicably pleased look on her face. "It seems you've been holding out on me Valerent. You're much better at subterfuge than I would have given you credit for."

"Thank you, My Lady." Valerent said, smiling genuinely at the unexpected praise.

"We shall have to put this new talent to work." She said. "Go now, and find out all you can about this new Goblin King. We need to find a weakness. All is not yet lost." With that she sat back at the vanity, pulling another brush from the drawer and bringing it to her hair. Valerent bowed one more time and left the room, closing the door behind him. He smiled happily to himself, and then silently berated himself for being so pleased with that dreadful woman's praise.

* * *

Sarah was overcome by a feeling of déjà vu as she glanced around her old bedroom. There were clothes scattered all over the floor and a heavy weight on her chest as Jareth lay with his head cradled on her shoulder, his arm draped lazily across her stomach. She stroked his hair lovingly, breathing in deeply the scent that had haunted her dreams. "What did you think of your children?" She asked suddenly, not even sure if he was still awake.

He smiled, his eyes closed, relishing the feel of her fingers in his hair. It was strange, really, how there are some things you don't even realize you've been missing until you have them back, and then you wonder how you ever lived without them. "They are utterly remarkable." He murmured. "Jasmine is strong and stubborn like you, and with only slightly better diplomatic skills than my own. We will make quite a team in the high courts I'm afraid."

"You've been getting along, then?" Sarah asked.

"I was actually a bit surprised at how easily she accepted me." Jareth admitted. "Being your daughter, I would have expected some kind of shouting match at the least. I must say the warm welcome was a pleasant surprise." He looked up at her then, his shimmering mismatched eyes still touched with sadness. "As is this one." He added, and she responded by placing a soft kiss on his forehead before continuing, letting her fingers trail down the soft skin of his neck as she spoke.

"Jasmine has been dreaming of her father all her life, and suddenly there you were." She said, her fingers unconsciously making small figure eights at the nape of his neck. "But I have a feeling you were quite a bit more than even she had hoped for. And I'm sure you didn't get such a warm welcome from Ryan."

Jareth laughed softly. "Oh, Ryan was very happy to see me." He said. "If I didn't heal so fast I'd have the black eye to prove it."

Sarah gasped, pushing Jareth up so she could inspect his eyes. "Oh, Jareth, he hit you?"

Jareth smirked at the motherly gesture and laid his head back in its comfortable place on her shoulder. "It was nothing more than I deserved, and the natural outlet for sixteen years of pent up aggression. Had he acted any differently I might have doubted that he was my son."

Sarah laughed at that. "You have seen him, haven't you?"

"The boy does resemble me quite a bit." He said, continuing the conversation as his fingers began absently exploring the naked skin on which they rested. "And not just his appearance. By the Gods, Sarah, it's almost frightening how much like me at that age he is."

"I always suspected as much." She told him.

"It must have been so hard for you, raising him by yourself." Jareth said, the guilt audible in his voice. He rolled over onto his back and pulled her into his arms.

"It wasn't so bad until he was about twelve. Old enough to start asking where you were and not be satisfied with the answers I gave him. Then it was like he blamed me for you not being there, and things have been tough between us ever since. Still, he's a good boy, and I think it was harder on him than it was for me." She placed her hand against his bare chest so that when he spoke next she could feel the rumble of his voice.

He laid his left hand over hers even as his right arm pulled her closer. "I wish I could have been there." He said, his voice thick with sadness and a touch of anger. "I should have been there. Or you should have been with me, by my side where you belonged. Oh, Sarah, when I think of the wasted years, of all the things we've both missed…." He didn't continue, but Sarah could imagine what he was thinking. He moved his hand lower, placing it on her empty belly and she closed her eyes to stop the tears from falling. How many times had she longed for this familiar touch? "Did it hurt?" He asked her softly.

"Labor?" she chuckled. "Ye, that was pretty bad, but it didn't last long. The really hard part was the pregnancy itself. I was sick a lot at first, and it made me miss you even more than I would have, I think." She told him. "My father was angry at me all the time, Karen didn't know what to do with me. Still, I never felt completely alone." She smiled, thinking of the first time she had felt the twins kick. "After all, a part of you was always with me."

He brushed his lips to hers. "You have no idea how right you are." He whispered, and she felt the fires beginning to kindle once more. He wanted to ask her so many more questions, but suddenly the need to know what he had missed was replaced with a far more urgent one. He pulled her to him, kissing her more gently than he had before, but with no less passion. The thought occurred to her that perhaps she should stop him before they started again, remind him that the children were waiting. Then his skillful fingers began to work their magic and Sarah promptly forgot that anything else existed outside this room.

* * *

A/N: Well, it took forever, but here it is! I can't believe I wrote another whole story in between updates! Oh well, I had to get that out of my system, and now you have your S/J fluff I promised you. I worked really hard on this chapter. I have 5 different versions of it saved on my hard rive, one of which would definitely have required that I up my rating. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it. Thanks everyone who reviewed the last chapter, please leave another note for me! I love you all! 


	12. Group Hug

Disclaimer: I do not own the Labyrinth.

* * *

They had lain in each other's arms for quite some time, catching up on things. Jareth told Sarah about the war and everything that had happened since. Sarah shared all the details of her life since the twins were born. Jareth told Sarah all that had transpired during his first meetings with their children, while Sarah told him everything she had learned of her new existence, as well as her brief visit to his castle before coming back to her old home. Of course, the conversation had not all taken place at once, but rather in the intervals when the two of them stopped to catch their breath.

Now Sarah was dozing, the first truly blissful sleep she had had since she was eighteen. She was awakened in much the same way as she often was in those days as well. She murmured in feigned protest as Jareth's careful nibbles along her neck pulled her from her slumber. As she came more fully awake, however, the eighteen year old girl vanished and was replaced by the thirty-four year old woman, mind ever wary of her responsibilities. "How long was I asleep?" she asked him.

"Only a few minutes." He murmured into her skin as his kisses made their way to the hollow of her throat and his hands began even more intimate explorations. He looked up at her and grinned wickedly. "I wanted to let you sleep longer, but I just couldn't stand it anymore." He said before going back to his previous task. She lazily ran her fingers through his tousled hair, quite content to let him continue doing what he was doing. That was until she felt a familiar presence invade her mind.

'_Sarah_…' the Labyrinth said. Sarah gasped, dragging herself from beneath Jareth and pulling the sheet tightly around her body as she sat up against the headboard. Jareth looked up at her in surprise.

"Sarah?" He said, his eyes narrowed with concern.

"That's it." Sarah said, speaking into the air. "We need to set a few ground rules. You can't just barge into my head any time you like." To her everlasting dismay, she felt the Labyrinth laughing inside her mind.

_'I'm sorry, little one. I thought I had given the two of you ample time to be…reacquainted with each other_.' It told her. Jareth was looking at her as though she had grown a second pair of legs, but she continued to speak into the air.

"Well obviously you didn't." she said. "So please go and come back later."

"Sarah, who are you talking to?" Jareth asked, worry lacing his voice.

"_Your_ Labyrinth." Sarah told him tightly.

"What?" Jareth blinked, sitting up to pull the sheet around himself now. "The Labyrinth is here?"

"He's in my head." Sarah sighed.

As if waiting for his cue the Labyrinth spoke again. '_I'm afraid not, little one. As much as I would like to let you and Jareth spend more time together, he has a kingdom to run, as does your son_.' He paused for a second and when the voice came again Sarah was taken aback by what she perceived as fear in the words. '_There's something happening here, Sarah. I don't know what, but I'm…worried. I have never been this long without my King._' Sarah smiled at this. She had not had long to study the relationship between this strange entity that she was now somehow kin to, and the man she loved. She found this little window of insight very illuminating.

"What's he saying?" Jareth asked, seeing the smile that had crept to her lips, but Sarah shushed him.

'_If I didn't know better, I'd think you were afraid to be without him_.' Sarah said in her mind, and she felt the Labyrinth's relief that she hadn't said the words out loud.

'_You have to understand, Young Sarah, despite my many talents there is only so much I can do in my current form. I need the Goblin King as much as he needs me_.'

It wasn't lost on Sarah that he had used the title and not the name. '_It's Ryan you want, isn't it?_' She thought.

'_I_ _need them both_.' The Labyrinth responded.

Sarah sighed. "Fine, then." She said out loud.

Jareth had been keeping silent, pouting just a little that she had shushed him earlier, but now his curiosity was getting the better of him. "Sarah, what is going on?"

Sarah gave Jareth an indulgent smile and kissed him softly on the cheek. "The Labyrinth is afraid that the Underground will explode without the Baaleron men there to protect it." She laughed, feeling the Labyrinth huff in her mind at her exaggeration of his words. Then the thought came unbidden to her mind of the skulking little man in the Goblin Castle, and she frowned. "I suppose he could be right." She added.

"Is something wrong?" Jareth asked, concern causing his brow to furrow.

"No, no." Sarah said, squeezing his hand. "The Labyrinth is just uneasy without you there." She told him. A thought occurred to her suddenly, and speaking into the air once again she said "Do you have a name, Old One? I can't just keep calling you 'The Labyrinth.'"

There was no response for several seconds, and then the voice reappeared. '_I had a name once, but.._'

"But you've forgotten it." Sarah finished for him, nodding. "Why am I not surprised?"

Jareth smirked. His family had been calling the entity 'The Labyrinth' for thousands of years. Leave it to Sarah to decide that was unacceptable. Sarah's eyes were darting around the room, presumably for inspiration. They came to rest on a poster of a very strange looking man with black hair and black makeup around his eyes. She had once told him what the man's name was, but he couldn't remember. "Okay." Sarah said smiling mischievously. "From now on I'll call you Ozzy." Oh yes, that was it.

The only sound that could be heard for quite some time was the pained squeaks of Jareth trying not to laugh. Finally the voice returned to her head. '_No…no I don't think I like that_.'

Sarah smiled wickedly. "Good. Ozzy it is then." She said.

'_Sarah, be reasonable_.' Her psychic companion moaned.

"Go on now, Ozzy. I have to get dressed." She laughed, nudging Jareth who now had his head buried in a pillow.

'_Sarah, if I remember my real name will you stop calling me that_?' it asked her.

"Oh, so you think you can remember something now?" she asked, her eyebrows raised. "Fine, as long as it's not something horrible like Belshazidar or something." She said.

'_Nothing could be more horrible than Ozzy_.' Ozzy said and Sarah could contain her laughter no longer.

"Then go start remembering and let me get dressed." She said. "And while you're at it, try to remember just what the hell we are and where we come from and why you don't have a body any more."

She felt a deep sigh in her mind. '_As you wish, little one, but call for me when you are ready. I still have things to teach you_.'

"Okay." She said. "I'll catch you later, Ozzy." He growled one more time and then he was gone, leaving her in peals of laughter.

Jareth looked up from his pillow, marveling at the flashes of silver and gold that flickered in Sarah's eyes as she laughed. "Perhaps you shouldn't provoke him." He told her, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes. "He did save your life."

She leaned in to kiss him again, but pulled away as his arms came up to wrap around her. "No, no. If we get started with that again, we'll never stop." She laughed, and climbed out of the bed. She looked around the room and was startled to see that every candle had melted down and there were puddles of wax on the furniture beneath them. "Oh, how did that happen?" she sighed.

Jareth stood behind her, putting his arms around her and resting his head on her shoulder. "Well, occasionally the flames would jump up and burn very hot for several seconds." He laughed. "By my count it happened six times."

Sarah blushed. "Seven, actually." She whispered.

Jareth laughed. "Slid one by then, did you?" he said, nibbling at her ear.

Sarah giggled and pulled away from him again, acutely aware that they were both still very unclothed. Jareth sighed and summoned a crystal, throwing it blithely into the air. It vanished and took with it the leftover candles and all of the wax they had dribbled. "Happy now?" he asked with a smirk. Summoning another crystal he released it as well, and was once again fully clothed.

"Two can play at that game." She said, grinning. She closed her eyes and imagined herself in a loose and flowing black and silver gown. She opened them again and looked down to find herself clothed in just such a garment.

Jareth was impressed, watching as she used her magic to finish tidying up the room. "One would think you didn't want people to know what we've been up to in here." He told her.

She smirked, walking towards him. As she made her way across the floor she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror. She stopped and turned to face her reflection, staring in awe at the stranger who looked back at her. Her hands moved to the silver streaks in her hair, and then to the pale and shimmering skin. She caught site of the flecks of silver that danced in her green eyes and blinked several times, but when she looked again they were still there. Jareth moved next to her, watching her gaze at her own reflection. "Is that really me?" She asked him.

"I wondered if you had seen it yet." He told her.

"My eyes…" she whispered.

"Oh, that's nothing." He smiled, stroking her cheek lovingly. "I think they change based on what your feeling. It's quite breathtaking." She looked up at him in wonder and he leaned down to cover her lips in a sweetly gently kiss. "Come, my beautiful Goddess. Let's gather our children and go home."

"I'm not a goddess, Jareth." She said rather seriously.

"What?" he asked her, confused.

Sarah frowned. "Ozzy said people would come to think of me as a goddess if I didn't convince them otherwise." She explained.

Jareth smiled, amused that she insisted on calling the ancient entity that had protected his lands for millennia 'Ozzy.' "Darling Sarah," he purred, "You were a goddess to me long before you actually became one."

* * *

It had still been daylight out when Jareth had vanished yesterday with no word to anyone as to where he was going or when he would be back. The Williams clan had spent several hours afterward speculating on those very questions, before finally deciding the best course of action was to sleep and see what answers a new day would bring.

As Jasmine climbed into bed that night and began to drift off, she realized that the last time she had fallen asleep her most pressing thought had been the next day's play tryouts. Now she doubted if she would ever even see her school again. Not that it mattered, there were more important things in life now. Things like being fae, not human. Things like calling crystals from no where and making things appear and disappear. Things like being the daughter of a King, and knowing that he was the ruler a magical land that she had only read about in fairy tales. Things like knowing she would one day take his place.

She stopped there; being a princess was fine, but she had no desire to be a Queen. She spared a moment to feel sorry for Ryan, who was going to be thrown headfirst into running a kingdom, with no time to practice or prepare. She didn't feel too sorry for him, however, because once he had gotten over his initial screaming fit (Ryan's customary reaction to everything,) he had actually seemed to warm to the idea. He had even taken down the _Angry Teenagers_ sign that had graced his door for years, and replaced it with a sign which read _Chambers of the King: Knock or be turned to a Goblin. _She wondered what her father would think of it when he saw it. Would he be angry that Ryan was taking it so lightly? She didn't think so. In fact, she was quite sure he would laugh, and possibly point out an even more horrible punishment of which Ryan was unaware.

Here her thoughts drifted to her father. She was amazed at just how much she loved him already. He had, after all, come to her when she needed him most. She had called out for him in her family's darkest hour and there he was, all shiny and magical and kind. He had swooped in and saved the day, just as she had always pictured only better. How could she not adore him? He had taken the image she had always had of the perfect father and torn it to shreds, leaving behind the slightest trace of guilt that she had underestimated him so badly.

By no means did she think him perfect. She had no doubt that he had a dark side, she could see the glint of steel in his eyes when his anger was aroused. His face had turned icy and dark as he spoke of war and death in his kingdom. There had been hatred in his countenance as he explained the fate her mother would have met in his world if he had taken her there before the war. There was great darkness in him, but far from being repelled by it, she was drawn to it. It called out to something deeply buried inside her, something wild and dark within herself that she had kept hidden all her life but that was enticing none the less.

Perhaps, if she was honest with herself, that was the true reason she had connected so quickly with her father. Not because of any little girl fantasies or fairy tale sweetness: It was because the connection was always there, in the darkness, in the hidden places of her soul. Ryan felt it too, she could see it. He had not tried as hard as she to keep his darkness hidden, had flaunted it in fact, but inside they were the same and now they knew where it came from.

Her father's words echoed in her mind. 'An ancient and noble house…. A bloodline both feared and spurned by other fae because of its inability to be tamed…..' To everyone who knew him, that phrase would have seemed the perfect description of her brother. His refusal to follow rules, any rules, had become legendary. He was the embodiment of the word untamable.

They would have never suspected or recognized the same quality in Jasmine. No, Jasmine followed all the rules, did as she was told, and rarely made a fuss. But only as far as it suited her, and that is what most people missed. Jasmine knew that the only person ever to see through her was her mother, and though no words had ever been spoken she knew her mother approved. She had always wondered why, now she knew: Sarah, too, was drawn to the darkness.

Jasmine's last thoughts as she fell asleep were of her mother. Jareth hadn't said where he was going when he left, but just before he vanished his face had softened, and she had seen hope in his eyes. Jasmine thought then and was just as certain now that Sarah had called for him. They would no doubt return for her soon, but for now it was enough to know that her mother was safe somewhere with her father, and most likely truly happy at last. This thought in mind, Jasmine closed her eyes and slept the sleep of the utterly content for the first time in her life.

* * *

Ryan awoke that morning feeling refreshed and invigorated. He couldn't remember ever having slept so well. He could smell coffee and bacon downstairs, and thought he would wander on down and have some breakfast. He stopped first at his sister's room, thinking to wake her up and bring her down with him. He knocked lightly at the door before opening it, only to find Jasmine already awake and sitting on the edge of the bed wrapped in a robe.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

She turned to him and smiled brightly, as though just realizing he was there. "Thinking." She said.

"About?" he wondered.

"They'll come for us today." She responded cryptically.

"And just how do you know that?" he asked her, not needing her to clarify. After sixteen years of being twins, they could finish each other's sentences most of the time anyway.

She tilted her head, regarding him curiously. "Don't you feel it?" she asked him. "There's a charge in the air. Big changes are coming."

Ryan smirked, and leaned against the doorframe. "I think all this magic that's been floating around is starting to get to you." He told her.

Jasmine seemed to think this over for a minute before nodding. "Maybe." She said. She reached a hand into the air and plucked a crystal into being, rolling it about between her palms. She thought about the things her father could do with a crystal, and decided she would ask him to teach it to her when he had time. She was so lost in this thought that she nearly missed the wide eyed gape she was receiving from her brother. She only caught it when he squeaked at her.

"How did you do that?" he cried.

"Do what?" she asked him, her brow furrowed.

"That crystal thing, like Dad does." He explained.

She narrowed her eyes. "You mean he didn't teach you?" she asked, and was answered by his look of utter incredulity. "Oh. Oops." She tossed the crystal into the air where it disappeared as though it had never existed in the first place.

"Show me how to do that!" Ryan demanded.

"I don't think I can." Jasmine said.

"Why not?" Ryan asked.

"Dad had to…I don't know, it was like he switched me on or something. I think you have to be switched on before you can do it." She said, standing up to face her brother who had crossed the room to glare down at her.

"So switch me on!" he cried.

Jasmine sighed in exasperation. "I don't know how!" She exclaimed. "I might hurt you!"

"Hey, hey, what's all this yelling about?" their grandfather asked from the doorway, and Ryan spun around on his heel, jutting a finger at his sister accusingly.

"She won't teach me how to do magic!" he complained.

Robert blinked and then stared at the two of them with a face so devoid of expression that Jasmine almost felt sorry for him. When he spoke again it was with the voice of a man who had seen and heard to much and was now shell-shocked. "Your grandmother made breakfast. Come down when you're ready." He said, and turned away quietly. Jasmine was torn between amusement and worry.

"See what you did!" she told her brother as Robert disappeared down the hall.

"Oh, he'll be fine." Ryan said, dismissing the situation with a wave of his hand. "Now come on, teach me some magic."

Jasmine growled, pushing past him on her way out the door. "For heaven's sake, Ryan, I can't!"

Ryan tagged along behind her as she headed towards the stairs. "Sure you can!" he encouraged her. "Just a little?"

"No."

"It's not fair!" Ryan pleaded. "Why did he teach you and not me?"

"By the Gods, boy, I just didn't get the chance." Came the annoyed reply from behind them. Both teens turned to find their father leaning on the wall just outside Sarah's door, his hands on his hips and his face a mixture of exasperation and amusement. He was dressed in layers of white and grey, with a white feathered cloak. It was the first time Jasmine had ever seen him in anything but dark colors, and she wondered if it was a reflection of the mood he was in. Even his smirk seemed brighter this morning.

"You've been with Mother, haven't you?" she asked, and was rewarded with a tilt of the head and raise of the eyebrow.

"You're far too astute, young lady." Jareth told her, smiling wickedly. "I trust you don't want me to go into detail."

Jasmine laughed. "No, no." she said, mockingly covering her ears with her hands and wrenching her eyes closed. "Please, by all that's holy, don't go into detail."

Ryan looked at Jasmine and then back to his father, his eyes narrowing. He had suddenly realized what they were talking about, and his feelings on the matter could be summed up in one word. "Yuck." He spat, and Jasmine only laughed harder.

Jareth turned his upraised eyebrow to his son. "Quiet, you." He said with a smirk, crossing the space between them to lay his hands on either side of his face. "Now hold still and close your eyes."

* * *

Jareth and Sarah had transported directly from her old bedroom to the this one, and had listened in on the strange argument that Jasmine and Ryan were having. Now Sarah stood watching from her doorway as Jareth interacted easily with their children, struggling to remember a happier moment in her life. She had worried that they wouldn't accept him, but those worries were laid to rest now.

Jareth finished whatever it was he was doing to Ryan, and took a step back. "There, now you're 'switched on.'" He told him, his face contorting as he used Jasmine's term for whatSarah assumed was probably some ancient holy Fae ritual. "Now your sister can teach you everything she knows, if she wants to." Sarah was taken aback when Jareth winked at Jasmine with those last words. She had never seen him wink before. Before Ryan could protest this he added "I'll teach what I can myself, and make sure that you both have tutors when we get home."

Something in Sarah stirred at these last words, and she heard it echoed in her daughter's voice. "Home…" Jasmine said softly. Then she smiled brightly at her father. "When are we going?"

Jareth turned towards the darkened doorway, obviously leaving it to her to respond. She stepped out into the hall. "Maybe we should at least eat some of Grandma Karen's breakfast before we go?" she said. She had been looking at Jasmine as she spoke, so she was caught off guard when Ryan tackled her with a hug sofierce she could barely breath.

"Mama!" He cried, sounding like the tiny little boy she once cuddled, and not the stubborn young man he had become. She realized that her head barely came to his chin. _Goodness, when did he get so tall?_ Now Jasmine had joined them, wrapping her arms around her mother and brother, a small sob escaping her lips. Sarah realized Jasmine too was taller than she, though not as tall as Ryan. _When did this happen? When had her children grown up?_ She almost began to panic, as though time had snuck past her somehow and she needed to hurry and catch up. And then he was there, his arms around the three of them, and as far as Sarah was concerned time stopped. They stood that way for a long time, their little family all together at last.

* * *

A/N: This chapter's a little silly and a little sweet. I hope you like it. Next chapter we go Underground!

Atsuibelulah: Here's a little Jareth/offspring interaction, hope you enjoyed it.

Nyllewell: Thank you! We'll have to start a mutual adoration society, because I absolutely LOVE your story. Its one of the best I've ever read here.

Sandra: Yes, I'm sorry the reunion took so long, but I hope it was worth the wait.

Candy Cane: Hmm…that's a good question.

Jazzy021: You think that was hot, you should have seen the unedited version, lol.

Anianka: A lot of people seemed to want Sarah and Jareth to fight it out in that chapter. I just couldn't see it, especially not after everything the Labyrinth had tried to show her about what Jareth had been through. I mean, that was the whole point. On the other hand, I like to see Jareth dodging sharp projectiles as much as the next girl.

Katie: I'm sorry I made you cry. I hope this one makes you laugh.

LadyoftheDragons1: Here you go.

Alorindanya: I'm glad you mentioned it. I had fun writing that story and I needed the break from this one. I'm glad you enjoyed that story and this one as well.

So okay, thanks to all my reviewers and all my readers too. Please continue to review, and tell me what you think of "Ozzy."


	13. Home At Last

Disclaimer: I don't own Sarah, Jareth, or the Labyrinth.

* * *

Toby absently stirred his coffee, staring out the window at the softly falling snow. It had snowed so much overnight that their car in the driveway was nearly invisible. He sighed, knowing he would be the one to trudge out in the cold to scrape all of it off and shovel the driveway before they could leave. They would certainly have to leave soon, if he didn't get back to University in the next day or so he would miss his mid-terms. As it was he had left all of his books at home so he couldn't even study. He had left home expecting his sister to die, and while he was pretty sure his professors would excuse him for that, he wasn't so certain they would accept the 'my sister's boyfriend, the Goblin King, came to take her away' defense.

On second thought, maybe he could stall a while. If he missed his mid-terms he would flunk out of school, and that wouldn't be a bad thing at all. He was in pre-law because his mother had insisted that he was born to be a lawyer. To Toby it seemed that he was born to hate law school. He could think of at least 50 different things he would rather study, including Middle Eastern interior design and applied water aerobics.

His thoughts were interrupted by the boisterous shouts of Ryan and Jasmine. "She's back! She's back!" they screamed as they tore through the house. There was absolutely no question who 'she' was. Toby sat his coffee down hurriedly and beat his parents to the kitchen door, only to be nearly mowed down by his niece and nephew. The sixteen year olds looked six again as they jumped up and down excitedly. Toby caught them in his arms before they could plow through the kitchen door and take down his parents too.

"Whoa, whoa, kids, calm down." He said, pulling them both to face him. "Now what's going on?" Before either of them could respond Toby heard a muffled sob behind him, and his mother rushed past him into the living room. Toby looked up at her, and then to the stairs, and smiled broadly at what he saw there.

Sarah and Jareth made their way down the staircase slowly, arm in arm, their chins lifted regally. Jareth seemed to radiate power and nobility, but there was no surprise there. What was amazing was that Sarah was glowing with a power of her very own. The last time they had seen her she had been fragile and pale, barely clinging to life. Now she was nearly pulsing with energy, and Toby felt his heart swell in his chest at the sight of her.

As she caught sight of them all staring at her she gave them a warm smile, and Toby actually heard his father gasp beside him. Even the twins were staring at her in awe, seeming to notice for the first time the change that had come over her. Even in these mundane surroundings it was easy to picture the two figures slowly descending the stairs toward them as the most powerful people in their world. Before he even realized what he was doing, Toby leaned down to whisper in the ears of his niece and nephew. "Watch carefully, kids." He told them. "That's what royalty looks like."

* * *

Robert heard what his son had said, and found himself agreeing. He watched his daughter and the man beside her, feeling as though he was seeing them both for the first time. Any anger, any resentment that he had stubbornly held on to melted at the sight before him. The father of his grandchildren clung to Sarah's arm gently, but possessively. It was a gesture that only another man in love would understand. _They truly do belong together_, he thought. Suddenly he understood so many things that had never made any sense to him before.

The spell their decent had cast was broken when they reached the bottom of the stairs, as Karen threw herself sobbing into her stepdaughter's arms. Robert smiled as Sarah put her arms around Karen and stroked her hair as a mother might comfort a child. Jareth whispered something that only Sarah could hear and stepped away from the two women to join his children, who were watching him with a look of complete adoration and respect. This in itself was miraculous, for Robert had not seen such a look on his grandson's face for many years.

As Jareth reached them Toby welcomed him with a companionable slap on the back, to which the King raised an eyebrow. Robert couldn't help but smile at the encounter. "You brought her back." He said.

Jareth turned so that his gaze settled on the old man's face. "I did." He agreed with a slight inclination of his head. Robert was suddenly hit with the full force of what had really taken place. His daughter had been at death's door. Not forty-eight hours ago he had been trying to decide whether to bury her here or bring her home. Now she was alive and well and he had the man standing before him to thank for that. The realization was like a blow, and Robert nearly staggered beneath it. For one brief second the urge to hug Jareth was nearly overpowering, but he fought it valiantly. Instead he offered his hand to the Goblin King, a quivering "Thank you" on his lips. Jareth accepted the hand graciously, again inclining his head in acknowledgement of the gratitude he had been offered. Only the briefest flash of his mismatched eyes let on that he understood the true depth of the interaction.

* * *

Breakfast was a noisy affair, with everyone talking at once over the clatter of dishes and the scuffle of chairs on the hardwood floor. The family spent the meal catching up on the little details of their lives. Sarah discussed the book she had been working on, and Jareth was fascinated to learn that in this world she was paid for her imagination. Toby talked about law school and the exams he had coming up. Robert regaled them all with harrowing stories of the real estate business. It was an absolutely normal family breakfast, unremarkable in anyway except that there was a mythical king clumsily spreading jelly on his Pillsbury biscuits at the end of the table.

No one spoke of near death experiences, magic crystal balls, or of being not quite human. There was no mention of wars or castles or goblins. Even the Goblin King found other subjects to occupy his end of the conversation, asking the children about school, Ryan about his band, Jasmine about her plays. It was the first true family meal they had ever had, because for the first time the family was all together.

As the meal drew to an end, however, the normalcy was shattered when Karen stood and began clearing dishes from the table. Jasmine put a hand gently on her grandmother's arm. "Let me, Grandma." She said, and Karen smiled and stepped aside. Jasmine made a quick gesture with her hand, in one fluid motion summoning a crystal and tossing it towards the table. The dishes disappeared, as did the leftovers and every other sign that there had recently been a large meal eaten there. Karen gasped and Sarah laughed delightedly, clapping her hands together as she did so.

"Did I not tell you she was a natural?." Jareth beamed as he spoke to Sarah. "She's taken to magic better than some who've been surrounded by it all their lives."

"Really?" Jasmine blinked.

"Absolutely." Jareth answered, standing to put his arm proudly around his daughter. "It would not surprise me in the least if you were reordering time in a few weeks."

Jasmine's grin would have lit a light house, but Ryan slumped dejectedly in his chair. Sarah nudged her son and whispered conspiratorially. "I'm sure you'll catch up in no time, Ryan." She told him. "You are the Goblin King, after all. I have it on good authority that Goblin Kings are frightfully powerful." She looked up at Jareth and winked, and he grinned at her smugly.

A strange and somehow terrifying sound drew their attention to the head of the table. Robert sat with his head leaning in his hands, his shoulders shaking in what appeared to be sobs. Then another small sound escaped him, followed by more. Toby looked at his sister worriedly, and then back at his father. Was that laughter?

Robert looked up at the concerned faces staring back at him and wiped an amused tear from his eye. "That is the absolute strangest conversation I have ever heard over breakfast." He said, and began laughing again, the rest of the family joining in.

* * *

The children were upstairs gathering what belongings they wanted to take Underground with them. Sarah had already gathered her belongings, electing to take only the contents of the drawer beside her bed, a few pictures, and first run copies of all the books she had had published so far. These things sat in a small pile at the foot of the stairs, and she paused to regard them, thinking how odd it was that a whole life could be summed up in such a small space.

"I don't understand why you have to go now." Karen was saying, this time making her appeal directly to Jareth.

"Mrs. Williams," Jareth said patiently, "As Sarah has already explained, the Underground is still very unstable since the end of the war, and to have its ruler absent for any longer than I already have been could prove disastrous."

"Not to mention the Goblin Kingdom." Sarah added. "I hate to think what the Goblins have done to the castle while Jareth has been away."

Jareth nodded grimly. "I would hope that Saren has kept them in line, but they can be quite a handful."

"But this is just so sudden!" Karen tried again. Sarah took her stepmother's hands in hers, looking into her eyes as she spoke.

"Karen, please try to understand, we have to do this. The children don't belong here, they never did. I never did either, and you know that. We belong with Jareth, and Jareth has a kingdom to rule. But we will come back to visit, just like we always have. And maybe you can come visit us as well." As Sarah spoke her eyes sparkled with just the slightest hint of silver fire, and Karen found herself inexplicably soothed. She smiled and nodded, finally accepting Sarah's reasons without another word.

Robert stepped up and put an arm around his wife. "I assume there will be a wedding?" he asked, mainly addressing Jareth.

"A wedding at this point would be redundant." Jareth said, ignoring the daggers that Robert was shooting him. "Sarah and I already have teenage children, after all. Our laws are different, by most it will be understood that I have taken Sarah as my wife. There is no need for ceremony." Seeming to sense Robert's dissatisfaction with this answer he added. "However, there will be a ceremony to present Sarah, and to crown her my Queen."

Just then Ryan appeared before them, carrying a large duffel bag and a guitar case, a satisfied smirk painted on his lips.

"I see your sister gave in and taught you to teleport." Jareth laughed.

"I had to." Jasmine called as she made her way down the stairs carrying her own small bag of essentials. "He wouldn't leave me alone and let me pack."

Sarah looked at the smallish bag her daughter was carrying and gave her a questioning look. "Is that really all you're bringing?" she asked.

Jasmine shrugged. "I don't really have any princess type clothes, so I just brought a few of my very favorite outfits." She explained, reaching the bottom of the stairs. "And I don't think I'll be needing makeup anymore." She stopped here and pointed to the shimmering discoloration that was beginning to appear over each of her eyes, smiling broadly.

"You mean that's not makeup?" Sarah asked, turning to Jareth and wiping at the glittering orange and silver above his eyes. Jareth frowned and caught her wrist.

"Honestly, Sarah." He chided. "All these years you thought I was wearing makeup?"

"Well…" Sarah hesitated, and Jareth shook his head at her. "But they're not always the same!" She said defensively.

"They are Fae markings, Sarah. We can alter them with magic to suit our tastes at the time, but underneath they stay the same." He waved his hand in front of his face, and the faint traces of color were replaced by vibrant splashes of orange and black and silver that decorated his eyes and cheekbones and receded into his hair, which also sported streaks of orange and black.

Sarah gazed at him, her hand absently reaching to brush the colored skin of his cheek. "Have I never seen the real you?" she wondered aloud, and Jareth lowered his lips to her ear and whispered in a voice that only she could hear.

"Only in the dark." He told her and she ducked her head, blushing furiously, even as his words sent shivers down her spine. He lifted her chin and smiled at her as she looked up at him sheepishly. He would have kissed her, heedless of the multitude of eyes watching them, had Ryan's voice not cut through his reverie.

"So why don't I have any sparkly eye things?" he asked, examining his face in the wall mirror. Jareth sighed, releasing Sarah who stepped back a bit unsteadily.

"They are fed by magic." He said. "Most Fae are born with them, but only because we are conceived and carried in the Underground, with its magic to nurture us. The more powerful the magic we are exposed to before birth, the more vibrant the colors of our markings. I was conceived and born in the Goblin Kingdom." He explained, raising a hand to indicate the bright and vivid colors that marked his face. He waved his hand again, and the colors faded once more, so that they were nearly unperceivable unless you were looking for them. "The two of you were conceived and born in a world with almost no magic, therefore you were born with no markings. Jasmine's markings are beginning to develop because she's been using magic. Once I take you home, that development will accelerate for both of you."

Ryan grinned and clapped his hands together briskly. "All right, let's get going then! Next stop, Goblin World!"

Jareth gave his son an annoyed glare, but kept his thoughts to himself. Sarah looked around at her children and her love, all huddled in a small group in preparation for the transportation spell. The children had obviously said their goodbyes and were ready to go, and Jareth had been ready for hours. She looked up at her parents and smiled. "I guess that's it, then." She said. "We have everything, time to be on our way. I've left an envelope on the table that holds instructions that everything I have be turned over to you, Daddy. The manuscript for the new book is there too. Be sure to get it to my publisher, and I've made arrangements that all royalties are to go to you from now on. Of course, I'm not gone forever, so if it turns out you need anything else just call.

"Call?" Karen asked. "How are we supposed to do that?"

"Just call my name and wish for me, I'll hear you." Sarah told them. With one last hug she stepped back into Jareth's waiting arms as he pulled a crystal from the air.

"Wait!" Toby cried, and Jareth paused and looked at his brother-in-law quizzically. "I want to come too!" He told them, stepping forward.

"Toby, no!" Karen exclaimed, grabbing her son's arm, but Toby gently pushed her off, moving closer to his sister and her small family.

"Jareth, please?" he pleaded. "I've dreamt of going back there since I was a child, and I have nothing here."

Jareth seemed to consider these words. "The Underground still might not be safe for humans. I can't guarantee I would always be there to protect you." He told him.

Toby shook his head resolutely. "I don't care!" he said. "I don't belong in this world anymore than Sarah or the children do. Please, Jareth, let me go home." Then he did something none of them expected. Getting down on one knee he bowed his head low the way he had seen knights do in old Camelot movies. "Your Majesties, I beseech you. I will pledge my loyalty to you as a servant of your kingdom. Please make use of me in what way seems best, but do not turn me away."

Sarah touched her brother's shoulder lightly. "Oh, Toby, are you sure this is what you want?" she asked, unshed tears in her eyes. She had never realized what a profound effect Toby's brief stay in the Castle Beyond the Goblin City had had on him. She looked up to meet Jareth's questioning gaze and nodded briefly, a mixture of both fear and joy coursing through her.

Jareth reached to his side and unsheathed an intricately etched sword that had not been there seconds before. "Tobias Michael Williams, do you pledge your fealty to the Underground Kingdom, and to me as your High King?" he asked, his voice a sharp as the sword in his hand.

Toby bowed his head once more. "I do, my lord." He answered.

"And do you also pledge fealty to my Wife and Queen, the Lady Sarah?" He asked.

Toby smiled at the irony of having to pledge loyalty to his big sister before answering. "I do, my lord!"

Jareth lowered the tip of his sword to Toby's left shoulder, then his right, then his left again. "Then by the power of Light I bid you rise, Sir Tobias Williams, Prince of the House of Baaleron, Brother to the Queen, Defender of the Underground Kingdoms, and Advisor to the Crown!"

Toby stood, a bit overwhelmed. "A simple 'Okay' would have done." He murmured.

"Yes, but you offered your service, and Jareth accepted it." Sarah told him as she hugged him. "What's said is said, after all."

"Way to go, Uncle Tobes!" Ryan said, giving his Uncle a friendly shove, to which Toby responded by catching the boy under his arm and ruffling his hair.

Jareth rolled his eyes and sighed. "I will add courtly manners to the list of things you all need tutors for." He said despondently, and settled in for another round of tearful goodbyes before he could finally bring his family home.

* * *

Saren sat crouched in the small chair she had brought into Jareth's throne room, her head in her hands, as goblins ran around her in circles. She had given up on trying to manage them, and now merely hoped to keep them from pulling the castle down around her. Seth had explained to her once that the goblins were a necessary evil, the dark offshoots of the wild magic that the Baaleron family thrived on. Besides, he had told her, they were really quite sweet once you got to know them.

Saren tried to keep this in mind as one of the goblins began chewing on her shoe. She tried to think of the smarter goblins that Jareth put to work as house servants. She tried to remind herself that she was there to keep things under control until the King returned, and that she was not just babysitting a bunch of disgusting little rodents. But when one of the vile creatures threw a chicken at her she had just about reached her wits end.

"Enough!" She shouted, standing up and flinging the goblin at her shoe against the wall. The room suddenly became deathly quiet, as all of the goblins and even the chickens looked up at her in fear.

"Uh Oh," one of the goblins piped up. "Elf lady mad now!"

"Oh yes, I'm angry!" Saren shouted. "Look what you've done to this place!" She picked up one of the nearest goblins and tossed him haphazardly through an open window. She had seen Jareth do this before and had thought at the time that it was a bit cruel. After spending a couple of days in his shoes she wondered how he hadn't killed the lot of them by now.

The terrified goblins watched as she tossed a few more of their companions about the room. "You will get this castle cleaned up right now or so help me I will carry you all to the Bog with my own two hands!" she roared in a voice she generally saved only for battle. "Now get moving!"

Without another word the little goblins ran over each other trying to get away from the screaming Elf Queen. Saren sighed and wiped the sweat from her forehead, mentally willing herself to calm down. She spun around with eyes wide when she heard Jareth's rich laughter behind her.

"Not so easy being me, is it?" he asked her. He was standing behind his throne, the not-human woman Sarah beside him.

"Jareth!" She cried, smiling brightly. "You're home! And not a second too soon!"

"So I see!" He said, glancing around his abused throne room. "I apologize for any trouble my miscreants have given you in my absence." He said, bowing slightly.

"Just promise not to leave me with them again, and I'll forgive you." She grinned, hugging her old friend, and then wrapping Sarah in a warm embrace she added, "My Lady, it is wonderful to see you again."

Sarah smiled warmly and Jareth raised an eyebrow at the friendly exchange. "Ah yes, I forgot that you have already met my Queen." He said, and Saren smiled happily at his choice of words. "May I present to you my children, Princess Jasmine Baaleron, my heir apparent, and Ryan Baaleron, King of the Goblin Realm."

Saren turned her gaze to the teenagers, a bit surprised by how much Ryan looked like his father. They seemed overwhelmed, Ryan especially so, and her heart went out to him. This was probably not the best first impression for him to have of his new kingdom. She curtsied to them both. "Your Majesty, Your Highness, it is a privilege to make your acquaintance."

Jasmine looked at her wide eyed. "Are you an elf?" she asked. Of course she knew there would be elves here, her father had told her as much. Still, seeing one for the first time was a bit of a shock. She put her hand over her mouth when she realized she might have offended the lovely elf woman. To her delight the lady laughed.

"She is Saren, the Elf Queen, little one." Jareth said, giving Saren an apologetic smile.

"Oh, the one that fought in the war?" Jasmine asked, and Saren laughed again.

"The very same." She said.

"Do you think you could teach me how to fight?" Jasmine continued, her voice tinged with awe.

"I would be honored, young Princess, if it would please your parents." Saren said, a twinkle in her eye.

Jasmine looked at her mother hopefully and Sarah smiled. "Maybe we should talk about it later." She said.

Saren glanced at the fifth member of the party, wondering not for the first time who he could be. He was obviously human, but unlike any human she had ever met. Jareth noticed the look and shook his head at his own rudeness.

"I'm sorry, Saren, my thoughts are everywhere. Please allow me to introduce Prince Toby, Sarah's brother."

Saren once again began to curtsy but Toby cut her off. "Please don't." he said sheepishly. "I've only been a prince for five minutes, and you've been a Queen all your life. I should bow to you."

Saren smiled at his humility. "But Your Highness, you are part of the High King's family, I must show you the respect you deserve."

Toby shook his head. "But you are the Queen of the Elves." Toby stated.

Saren studied the handsome young human with the wild golden curls. "Very well then, we shall call ourselves equal." She told him, offering her hand. He took her fingertips in his palm and drew her hand to his lips.

"Very well then, My Lady, equals it is." He told her, smiling. They stared at each other for a long moment before Jareth cleared his throat and reminded them there were others present.

"Has anything happened in my absence?" Jareth asked.

Saren turned back to her king, a slight blush at her cheeks. "Yes, Your Majesty, a great deal." She said when she had her voice back.

"Then let us retire to the conference room to discuss it." He began to stalk out of the room, the business of being High King taking over once again. Suddenly he remembered his family. He snapped his fingers and called "Belloch!" Seconds later a taller than average goblin with glasses and a waistcoat scrambled into the room. When he saw Jareth he beamed.

"Your Majesty, you're back!" the little goblin cried.

"I am, Belloch, and I've brought my family." Jareth said.

"Family, Sire?" the little servant asked, looking at the strangely dressed people curiously.

"Yes, Belloch. My wife, Queen Sarah, her brother Toby, my daughter Princess Jasmine, and my son Ryan, your new King." Jareth said, not bothering to explain any further.

"New King?" Belloch's eyes widened, and he wasted no time running to grovel at Ryan's feet. Ryan smiled sheepishly and tried to pull the little servant up, but Belloch continued to kiss his combat boots.

"Please stand, Belloch, His Majesty is not used to groveling yet." Jareth laughed. "I'd like you to show my family to the gardens. Have rooms prepared for each of them and have lunch sent out to them. Also please assign them each a servant."

Belloch bowed once more to Ryan and then to Jareth. "Yes, Sire." He said. "If Your Highnesses would all follow me?" he said, addressing the others before walking through the door.

They began to follow them but Sarah stopped at Jareth's side. "Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?" she asked him.

"I would like nothing better, but the children may need you to help get them settled." He told her, kissing her lips softly. "Don't worry, my heart, the time will soon come when you beg to be excused from the endless meetings and conferences."

Sarah smiled and squeezed his hands. "Will you come to us soon?" she asked.

"As soon as I can." He told her, and watched as she followed the others out of the throne room.

"And what do you think of my family?" Jareth asked Saren as they made their way to the conference room.

Saren sighed. "They're very…handsome." She said.

* * *

A/N: Here it is, the long awaited chapter 13! I finally got them to the underground. Sorry it took so long to update, lots of things going on in Casa de M. I'd like to thank all my loyal readers, and especially my loyal reviewers.

Solea: Thank you!

Atsuibelulah: Wow, very high praise indeed! Thank you!

Ladyofthedragons1: Yes, life is good.

Sandra: Ooh, don't laugh in the library!

Labylvrphx: I'm glad you liked it.

Nyllewell: What was I thinking? That's a long story but it involves red wine and a rerun of the Osbourns. Anyway, I buckled down and wrote this update just for you, now please update your story soon, and please god let someone kick Temnestra's ass. You wanna borrow Saren?

Adara3: Laughing at work is not as bad as laughing at the library! Unless you work at the library?

Jumping-jo: I'm sorry, Ryan's kinda quiet in this chapter. But he gets to teleport, so that's cool.

Shavaineth: Don't worry, its not permanent.

Afrieal: No, don't hurt the dust bunnies!

Sora Sei'iki: Wow, I'm not sure I'm worthy of such high praise, but thank you!

Katie: You know, I never did imagine him as female.

Crazy07: Hmmmm…..thoughts to ponder.

Alorindanya: It was probably way to silly.

Orphelia-Rose: I'm so glad you love it!


	14. Goblin Party

Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth.

* * *

The stone walls of the Labyrinth shimmered imperceptibly, the ageless structure becoming just a bit more vivid. The bushes that lined the hedge maze shuddered as a breath of life flowed into them. A gentle breeze kicked up throughout the twisting, turning terrain that made up the Labyrinth's landscape, and the entity that lived at the heart of it all smiled an invisible smile. His family was home at last.

* * *

They stepped out of the throne room and stared in awe at the large open chamber beyond. It was round, its perimeter stretching for hundreds of feet in either direction. The gleaming black marble that made up the chamber floor reflected the flickering flames of thousands of candles lining the walls, which stretched upward at least a hundred feet. The edge of the chamber was scattered with arched doorways and spiraling staircases which led to balconies that looked out over the chamber all the way to its pinnacle. Ryan gasped, and the sound echoed throughout the chamber as though a hundred others had gasped as well.

Ryan was confused. The throne room they had just left was messy and dingy and crowded, nothing like the room they had just entered. "Where are we?" he sighed.

Belloch looked up at the young king. "Why, this is the receiving hall, Majesty. Have you never seen your castle before?"

"My castle…" Ryan breathed, never taking his eyes off of the soaring marble that stretched before him.

"None of us have, Belloch." Sarah admitted, just as awed by the sight before her as her son.

The little goblin beamed. "Then by all means let me give you a tour before we go to the gardens!" he bounded, obviously proud of his home and eager to show it off. "That is, if it pleases Your Majesty." He added, addressing Ryan.

Ryan quickly recovered his composure, giving Belloch a benevolent smile. Behind the smile his mind was racing. _What would a king do_? "Perhaps later, Belloch." He told the little servant. "I'm sure my fa….um….King Jareth will want to give us the tour himself. For now I would appreciate it if you could show us to the gardens, and have our things brought to our rooms.

Belloch's eyes widened, as though horrified that he had not thought of that himself. "Of course, Sire!" he said, bowing so low his face nearly touched the floor. Then he stood and disappeared through one of the arched doorways, leaving Ryan and the others to stare at the marble walls in silence. When he returned there were three other goblins with him.

They stopped short a few feet away and stared up at Ryan in awe for a few seconds. Then in one unspoken movement they ran forward and began to grovel at his feet as Belloch had done in the throne room. Ryan sighed, and bent down to pull them back up. "Please, don't do that." He murmured as he worked diligently to pry them from his boots. It was a futile effort, for every time he got one to stand, another would go back to groveling. "Come on now, stop it." He said, his voice a bit louder that before. Still the goblins continued to cling to his boots. Finally Ryan's patience gave way. "Enough!" he boomed, his voice echoing loudly against the marble walls. The little goblins backed away then, their eyes wide with fear. Ryan hated seeing that look on their faces, but he didn't know what else he could have done.

Belloch ran quickly to stand between Ryan and the other goblins. "Forgive them, Majesty!" he said, bowing low again. "They were overcome with joy to meet their new King. They meant no harm."

"It's alright." Ryan said, smiling at the frightened goblins. "I'm not angry. But please, no more groveling, and not so much bowing, okay?" This seemed to calm the goblins, because they quit shaking and smiled eagerly at him.

"Of course, Sire." Belloch answered for them. "Everything as you wish!" he added, bowing once more. Ryan heard his mother and sister giggling behind him, but chose to ignore them.

"Thank you, Belloch." He said, as the other goblins began gathering up the bags and belongings and running toward the stairs. One of them reached for the guitar case, but Ryan stopped him with an outstretched hand. "No, thank you. I'll keep this one with me." He said, and the goblin gave him a toothy grin and scurried off behind the others.

"Come, Majesties!" Belloch said, moving across the floor. "We'll take the shortcut to the gardens." He passed through another of the arched doorways and let them into a much smaller room with a large set of double doors at its back wall. He marched up to the doors and said loudly "Gardens!" There was a momentary pause before the large doors swung outward, revealing a splash of warm sunshine against a menagerie of flowers, bushes and small trees.

Sarah had felt the now familiar shimmer of magic as the doors opened. "Belloch," she wondered aloud, "tell me about the 'shortcut.'"

"Of course, My Queen." He said happily. "The 'shortcut' was a gift to goblins from the first king. The castle is very, very big, and goblins can't pop around like Fae people can, so the first Goblin King gave us the 'shortcut.' All we have to do is tell it where we want to go and it takes us there."

"So you can go anywhere in the castle with this?" Sarah asked.

"Only if we've already been there." Belloch informed her. "It won't open to places we've never been. And the King can make anyplace off limits whenever he wants to."

"It's still pretty amazing." Toby said.

"Welcome back to the Underground." Sarah laughed, linking arms with her brother as they passed through the doorway. "Everything is amazing here, and nothing is what it seems."

She paused as serious thoughts encroached on her pleasant mood, and Toby frowned at the pensive look on her face. "What's wrong, Sarah?" she asked.

She smiled reassuringly and patted his arm. "Nothing, really." She said. "I was just thinking how ironic it is that after everything I went through to get you out of this place I've turned around and brought you right back to it."

"Everything happens for a reason, Mother." Jasmine said. "Isn't that what you've always told us?"

Sarah sighed. "Yes, but what makes you think I know what I'm talking about?"

* * *

The Goblins had snuck back into the throne room, chickens and all, when they realized it was once again empty. Now they were sprawled about the floor of the chamber like so much vermin in a junk yard. Their King had been gone for days now and no one knew where he was or when he was coming back. Some had even heard that he was going away forever.

The goblins believed this was an excellent excuse for a party. For while their king had never been particularly friendly, he had in recent years become downright unbearable. And so it was that they found themselves huddled en masse on the cold stone floor, imbibing freely from a keg of ale that had been not so much tapped as impaled.

They were merry, they were jolly, they were inattentative.

"Oi, Geezer, who is I?" one small goblin with a pointed snout called to another. Presently he began stomping around, his short spindly legs attempting to imitate long sturdy ones. As he stomped he growled and grumbled incoherently. As a finishing flourish he grandly kicked a chicken across the floor. This elicited peals of delighted laughter from the others.

"Gah!" shouted one. "You is He! You is He!" The rest pretended to cower before the small goblin.

Encouraged by the enthusiastic response of his counterparts, the small goblin, whose name was Poget, continued his imitation. Hobble/strutting to another chicken he exclaimed "You is tire-ish! You go to bog now!" With that he picked up the poor chicken and tossed it merrily through a window. Peals of delighted laughter could be heard outside an in every hallway.

Poget opened his mouth, yet another imitation of the king waiting at the tip of his toungue, when a large booming voice forced its way into their minds. '_And just what do you think you're doing?_' it asked.

The goblins fell to the floor, squealing as if they had been injured. Most of them covered their ears as though to block out the voice that was already inside their minds. '_Oh, stop that, children_.' The voice said, somewhat softer this time. '_Get up and quit groveling, I haven't hurt you.'_

The goblins stopped writhing and opened their eyes, but made no move to stand or even to abandon the comfortable fetal positions they had assumed. "What is it?" one little goblin asked.

Geezer, the oldest of their number, answered in hushed tones. "I thinks it be the voice." He told them sagely.

"The Voice?" another exclaimed. "But the Voice been gone for big years!"

'_I have not been gone_.' The Voice told them. '_I have merely been quiet. Now tell me, why are you mocking your king_?'

"We was just having fun, Old One!" Geezer answered. "Please don't hurts us!"

The Voice chuckled inside their minds. '_Having sport at the expense of your King is a dangerous game, little one. What if he were to catch you at it?_'

"The King go bye bye! Maybe he never come back?" a little goblin answered hopefully from the back of the room, and the others murmured in agreement.

'_On the contrary, little ones_.' The voice said. '_King Jareth is back, in this very castle as we speak_.'

The little goblins looked at each other, horrified. As if they had all come to the same conclusion at once, the goblins began to wail, and scurried about the room in an attempt to clean it quickly. The Labyrinth watched them for a moment with great amusement, before demanding their attention again.

'_Children!_' he called to them. '_I'm not done talking to you_.' The goblins stopped and sat down again, waiting for him to continue. '_That's better_.' He said. '_King Jareth has been your king for many many years, and he has served you well, though you may not realize it._'

"He's cranky!" Poget responded. "And he kicks us."

The Labyrinth laughed softly in their minds. '_But he watches over you, and protects you too._' He reminded them.

"That's true." Geezer answered. "He not let the bad mens takes us when the fighting came. He hides us so they can't hurts us."

"Oi" Poget continued. "And sometimes he makes funny stories for us."

"And he sings to us!" Another goblin cried, and the others called out enthusiastically at this. Suddenly the room was filled with the voices of goblins remembering the good things about their king, and soon they were all feeling very guilty about their earlier behavior.

"We is sorry, Old One." Geezer said. "We should not makes fun of King Jareth."

'_No, you shouldn't_.' The Labyrinth scolded gently. '_Especially now that he will be going away_.'

"Going away?" a chubby goblin cried. "Where he goes?"

_'King Jareth is now the High King of all the people of the Underground. He is not the Goblin King anymore. Soon he will go to live in Caisleán Tuar Ceatha, the Rainbow Castle by the Sea_.'

There was silence in the throne room, followed by a mournful high pitched keening: the sound of many little goblins in a state of utter distress. "_He will goes away?_" Poget called, forgetting his earlier glee at the thought. He threw his hands over his face to cover the tears that were forming. "_Why he leaves us, Old One? Who will takes care of us now?_"

The Labyrinth smiled, and though no one saw it, the room seemed to become a bit warmer. '_King Jareth, in his kindness, has brought you a new King, and he will take care of you from now on_.' The Labyrinth told them.

"A new King?" the chubby goblin cried. "Where is he?"

'_He is in the garden_.' The Labyrinth told them, and the little throng of goblins began to push their way towards the door, intent on seeing their new ruler that instant. '_Stop!_' The Labyrinth called. '_You will meet him when the time is right. For now, you should get this place cleaned up. You don't want him to think badly of you do you?_'

"No, Old One!" Geezer cried, his eyes round with terror at the thought. A new King? He was more frightened than he wanted to say. What if the new king was mean? What if he hated goblins? What if he didn't sing? Oh, the thought was too terrible to dwell on.

'_And do not fret, my little ones. Your new king is young, and new to the underground. It will be up to you to show him how wonderful a place the Goblin Kingdom will be_.'

"But will he sing to us?" Geezer asked sadly.

_'King Ryan loves to sing_.' The Labyrinth answered, and a cheer went up throughout the crowd.

* * *

Allyndriel sorted through her wardrobe, looking for the perfect gown for dinner this evening. She was not going anywhere special. Of course not, there were no parties in exile. But it was a small matter, she wanted to look her best regardless. One never knew when they might be called upon to look radiant. She continued her search, but came up empty handed, deciding that there was nothing but trash in her closet. She shrieked in rage, and tore at the hangers, furious at her ladies maids for allowing her wardrobe to become such a shambles.

"Marta!" She screeched, and a terrified young girl slouched into her line of sight.

"Yes, My Lady?" she asked sheepishly.

"These dresses are ugly!" she screamed, pulling one off its hanger and throwing it at the frightened girl. "No self respecting Fae would be caught dead in that rag! Why didn't you tell me all of my clothing was so worn and disgusting?"

"But Ma'am." The girl said. "You were just in your closet yesterday, and you had no problem with your clothes." The young servant realized her mistake too late as Allyndriel's hand flew up and landed smartly across her face, bringing a dark red welt and tears to the girls eyes.

"You little, whore! You presume to tell me what I think now? I should throw you in the deepest part of my dungeon, beat you within an inch of your life, and then heal you so I can do it again!"

The young servant cowered against the wall. Tales had been told of servants going missing and never being found again after one of her mistress's sudden rages. She waited for more blows to come, but instead heard a soft tapping at the door. Servant and mistress both looked up at the source of the sound, and were greeted by the somewhat shocked face of Valerent.

"My Lady." Valerent said, bowing gently.

"Valerent!" Allyndriel purred, smiling brightly, and Marta gazed at the sudden change in her mistress's demeanor. Suddenly Allyndriel's attention returned to her and she cringed farther against the wall. To her surprise she was given a warm smile. "Marta, my sweet," Allyndriel said, "You may go now. Please summon a tailor and tell her I'd like a new wardrobe made up as soon as possible."

Marta stared at her mistress in awe for a brief second, before curtseying and turning to leave the room.

"Oh, and Marta?" Allyndriel called, the pleasant tone of her voice making Marta's skin crawl.

"Yes, Miss?" she answered.

"Have something made for yourself, child. I hate to see my servants in rags."

"Yes Miss." Marta answered, and hastened out of the room. Once safely away she crouched in a corner and sobbed uncontrollably for several minutes, quite sure that she had come within a few seconds of being another missing servant.

When they were alone, Allyndriel turned her warm smile to Valerent and his blood ran cold. "Do you have news for me, Valerent?" she asked sweetly, walking toward the doors that led to her balcony.

Valerent swallowed. "I've come to tell you that King Jareth has returned to the Underground, My Lady, only a few moments ago."

"And his lovely human bride, has he brought her with him?" She asked.

"He has, My Lady, as well as his children and their uncle, the human woman's brother. He called him _Prince_ Toby." Valerent informed her, his nose crinkled in distaste.

Allyndriel chuckled lightly, leaning over the railing of the balcony. She looked so innocent there, perched on the railing that overlooked the gardens, with her blond hair sparkling in the warm sunlight. It occurred to Valerent just how easy it would be to push her over the side and end his unpleasant allegiance to this woman, but duty forbade such a thing.

"So, he's brought the whole family, has he?" Allyndriel purred. "And does he know you know they're here?" She asked, looking at him pointedly.

"No, My Lady. As far as he knows I don't even know he's back yet."

"Good." Allyndriel said. "I wouldn't want him to get suspicious if he went looking for you and found that you had disappeared shortly after he arrived."

"Yes, My Lady." Valerent said, grating inwardly that this whelp thought to teach him how to be subtle.

"Keep watching them, Valerent." She said. "He will want to introduce his family to the kingdom eventually, and when the Fae nobility learn that he has mad a human their Queen, they will be more than happy to join me when the time comes to take back the throne. Until then, keep watching, and learn all you can that may help us." She turned then, placing a pale hand to Valerent's cheek. "We will crush him, Valerent. And when he is gone the Labyrinth will be mine and I will be the most powerful Fae in the underground."

She turned her back to him again, and Valerent took it as a dismissal. As he turned and walked away he shuddered at the memory of her last words. He absently wondered what he was doing helping her, but brushed the thought away as he transported himself back to the Goblin Kingdom.

* * *

A/N: I am so sorry it took so long to get this chapter out! Things have been very hectic around here lately. Anyway, here it finally is, and I hope to have the next chapter out this weekend. I hope you enjoy it.

Wicked Game: Hehe, maybe…..

Sandra: Don't worry so much;)

Jumping-jo: I'm glad you enjoyed it.

Atsuibelulah: I hope this one makes you laugh too. At the funny parts, that is.

WildPixieChild16: Well…I did update.

Jazzy021: Yes you are, and wow, thanks!

Ladyofthedragons1: No one ever writes a love life for Toby, unless its slash shivers.

Nyllewell: There, and update. Are you happy now? LOL. I miss the Prophesy, but the new one is good too. Can't wait for more.

Bob: Huh?

11n21: Aww..thank you! Your review made my day!

Afrieal: Yes, sparks galore. And thank you!

Anianka: There is your Ozzie comeback, although probably not quite what you were expecting.

Crazy07: Thank you.

Celebwen Telcontar: If I asked you what your favorite book was, would that be redundant? LOL. I think Ryan will learn to like his miscreants.

Moonjava: Thank you!

And to everyone who read and didn't have time to review, thank you for stopping by.

Please leave a contribution below, I may write faster accordingly, you just never know.


	15. Ryan Handles His Instrument

Disclaimer: I do not own the Labyrinth, or anything Lynnard Skynnard ever wrote.

* * *

Jareth sprawled lazily in the large comfortable chair he had summoned for their meeting. They were in the conference room, but as it was just he and Saren conferring he saw no need for the uncomfortable stone monstrosity that made up the usual seating around the table. As Saren spoke he tapped his leathered foot thoughtfully.

"So the rulers of the outer kingdoms have fallen into line as well?" he asked her.

"Yes, sire, all of them." She answered, though her eyes betrayed the nameless unease that had crept its way into her heart. "Now that the war is over and a few weeks have gone by things are beginning to settle down every where. The people are beginning to wonder where you and when you will hold the coronation ball though."

Jareth frowned. "Yes, of course. We should begin the planning immediately, though we will wait the customary six months for the coronation itself. I should also meet with the Rulers to discuss a charter for the new government."

"Very good." Saren said, inclining her head slightly. "I shall send an emissary to Chead Cathair to prepare for your arrival."

Jareth looked up at his old friend and studied her face. "Saren," he said finally. "Your news is good and yet something still troubles you."

Saren shook her head dismissively. "It is probably nothing, Jareth. Just the unease of a silly woman who has seen too much war."

Jareth frowned and stood from his chair. He sauntered toward her and leaned against the table where she sat. Taking her chin in his gloved fingertips he raised her face so that she had no choice but to look him in the eye. "My Lady Saren, there is no one in the Underground whom I trust more than you. Your instincts have saved my life more times than I can count. If something troubles you then I would hear what it is."

Saren sighed and leaned her head against the back of her chair with her eyes closed wearily. "It all seems too easy." She said after a long pause as she tried to find words to describe what she was feeling. "You have vowed to change the very foundations of the government, and yet most seem to be taking it in their stride. I fear a plot beneath their smiles and polite acquiescence."

Jareth nodded, considering her words. "Is it not possible that people are just tired of fighting?" he asked.

"Jareth," Saren said sadly,"You know better than I do that when it comes to power, there is always someone well rested and on a fresh horse."

Jareth smiled bitterly. "You're right, of course. And I suppose a High King can't afford the luxury of wishful thinking. Still, if there was a plot who would you suspect to be behind it?"

"I'm not sure." Saren said as she stood, all pretense of a formal conference now lost. "What I do know is that I don't trust Valerent, and I don't like having him in the castle. I fear he is spying for someone."

"The man has no love for me, it's true." Jareth agreed. "Still, he has sworn his loyalty to me."

Saren narrowed her eyes in frustration. "And I suppose he would be the first man ever to swear loyalty with one side of his face and betray it with the other?" she hissed.

Jareth sighed, absently running his gloved fingers through his hair. "Of course not, Saren, and I agree that the man should be watched closely. Still, whether either of us likes it or not I need his ties to the old Council of Elders."

"Why, Jareth?" Saren said, her voice raised in exasperation. "Why do you need any ties to them at all?"

Jareth stared at her for a moment, shocked that she would raise her voice to him, and more shocked at himself for provoking it. He turned away from her then and walked to the window, gazing out at the winding Labyrinth below. "I want to change things, Saren. I want to make them better." He answered softly. "But I don't want to be the King that destroyed all of the old ways entirely."

Saren came to stand behind him, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. "I know, Jareth." She told him. "And I'm sorry to provoke you. But I will do whatever I have to do to make sure the old ways don't destroy you."

Jareth turned to her and smiled. "I'm counting on it." He said, offering her his arm. "Now come, sister of my heart, enough business for one day. My family awaits us in the garden."

* * *

Sarah, Toby, Ryan and Jasmine had been escorted to a gazebo at the center of the gardens, and now found themselves left alone to explore and to wait. As the women wandered around ooing and ahing over the flowers and plants they had never seen before, Toby and Ryan sat down on benches in the warm sunshine and began comparing their first impressions of the Underground and the Castle Beyond the Goblin City. As they had not been here long and had only seen a portion of the castles and garden, it was not a terribly long conversation and Ryan soon found himself bored.

With fingers working of their own accord he deftly unclasped his guitar case and brought the instrument to his hands almost reverently. He had left his electric guitar and amp behind and opted instead to bring his old acoustic Martin. He had other guitars, newer and fancier, but none that played as well as the old Martin. He called it Blondie, and his mother had found it at a garage sale when he was twelve. It had been his first guitar, and to him nothing in the world sounded as sweet.

Clutching her to his chest lovingly, Ryan began to absently strum the guitar, pausing to adjust the tuning here and there until the tone was crystal clear. When it was to his liking, his fingers went to work on the strings finding the song for him before his brain did. He smiled when he realized what he was playing, letting his fingers control him. He hadn't thought to bring a slide, so he had to improvise a bit, but anyone who had ever heard the song would have recognized it immediately. He let his hands caress the strings a while longer before opening his mouth to sing.

"If I leave here tomorrow,

Would you still remember me?

For I must be traveling on now.

There's too many places I've got to be.

And if I stayed here with you girl

Things just wouldn't be the same.

Cause I'm as free as a bird now,

And this bird will never change."

Sarah turned from the flower she was investigating to watch her son, and sighed when she heard the song. It had been one of her favorites growing up, but after Jareth left it had become just a little too personal, and she could never listen to it without crying. Nevertheless, Ryan had heard it somewhere, and had fallen in love with it as she had. It was one of the first songs he had ever learned, and she had heard him play it many times, though she had never been able to appreciate it. Especially as he grew older and sounded more like his father, she had retreated to her room whenever she heard the familiar notes drifting to her from his bedroom.

Now there was no need to hide from it. She smiled in wonder that in the blink of an eye everything had changed, and things that had once brought such sorrow were no longer painful. She moved closer and took a seat beside her brother, Jasmine following close behind, as the three of them enjoyed the music and the sunshine and the gentle smell of blossoms in the breeze.

Ryan for his part was oblivious to his audience, both of his family sitting in front of him, or the small group of goblins that were hiding in the bushes at the edge of the clearing. He didn't even notice when his father and Saren appeared just on the other side of the goblins, standing to watch with amusement as the goblins clamored over each other to get a better view of their musical new King. When Ryan played he was oblivious to everything around him, lost in a world of his own creation.

Managing to wipe away the grin on his face Jareth put on his best angry king façade and strode up behind badly hidden goblins. "Don't you lot have something to do, or have you taken up espionage in my absence?" He asked gruffly, and the four goblins leapt into the air in surprise, scrambling out of the bushes and throwing themselves at Jareth's feet and begging for forgiveness. "Belloch!" he added with surprise. "I expect this kind of behavior from the others but not from you."

Belloch looked up at the great and terrible king. "Yes Sire, I'm sorry sire!" he pleaded. "We just heard the young king singing and we wanted to hear more."

Jareth continued to look menacing, but he didn't know how much longer he would be able to hold back the grin that was trying to break free. "Oh really, and what did you think?" he asked.

"We uh…we liked it, Sire." Belloch said, and the other three goblins bobbed in toothy grinned agreement.

"He makes pretty sounds." One of them added, complaining loudly when Belloch elbowed him for speaking out of turn.

By now the commotion had drifted into the clearing and Ryan had stopped playing. He stood, gently handing the guitar to his sister, and moved to join his father. Jareth saw his approach and inclined his head slightly, indicating that Ryan should take over. Now was as good a time as any for the boy to learn how to deal with his subjects. Taking his cue from his father, Ryan did his best to make himself look menacing before he spoke.

"I'm pleased that you find me so entertaining." He said, as surprised as anyone else to hear the commanding tone in his voice. The goblins jumped once again, turning this time to grovel at Ryan's feet. When they began to whine their apologies to him he held up an imperious hand. "Stop." He said forcefully. "I will forgive you as long as you promise it will not happen again."

"Oh yes, Sire, we promise!" Belloch whimpered. "We will never ever spy on you again!"

"Good then." Ryan said. "Now go see to our lunch." He waved his had dismissively and the goblins began backing away, bowing alternately to Ryan and then to Jareth as they went.

Once they were gone, Jareth gave Ryan a hearty slap on the back. "You did that very well." He told him.

"He has a lot of experience being a jerk." Jasmine commented, and Ryan stuck his tongue out at her.

"Really Jareth, is it necessary to be so mean to them?" Sarah asked. After all, they didn't mean any harm; they just wanted a better look at their new king."

Jareth took Sarah's arm and escorted her to the table beneath the gazebo. Behind him Toby silently offered his arm to the Elf Queen, and she graciously accepted, an uncharacteristically shy smile gracing her lips. Ryan sarcastically held out his arm to his sister, and Jasmine batted her eyelashes and bowed dramatically before accepting it. They leaned on each other and giggled conspiratorially as they made their way to join adults at the table.

"The goblins have a lot liberty here, Sarah." Jareth continued the conversation as he pulled out a chair for her. "You'll find they get away with a great deal more than even they realize. What boundaries there are must be upheld strictly or they would overrun the place." Saren shuddered unconsciously at those words and Jareth smiled at her apologetically as he pulled the cork from a bottle of wine he summoned from nowhere. "Poor Saren, I fear you may never recover from your time with my goblins."

Saren sighed. "I have stood toe to toe in battle with the fiercest of warriors and never flinched. I have looked orcs in the eye as I drove a spear through their black hearts and never felt an ounce of fear. But being alone with these goblins was terrifying." She gratefully accepted the goblet of wine Jareth offered her.

"I don't understand." Jasmine said, taking her own proffered goblet from her father's outstretched hand. "They don't seem so bad. They're kinda cute."

Saren nearly choked on her wine. "Cute? They're hideous!"

"How can you say that?" Jasmine defended. "They seem so helpless and…and.."

Saren shook her head. "The word you're looking for is stupid. And believe me, they're not helpless. I have the bite marks to prove it."

Jareth laughed, holding up his hands before Jasmine could speak again. "Actually, little one, you've just illustrated an important point. Almost everyone who meets the goblins is afraid of them. They may eventually learn to tolerate them, as Saren has, but they can never see them as anything but hideous, and they certainly can't control them. In ten thousand years only the Baaleron's have been the exception to this."

"But why?" Ryan asked, frowning as he took a sip from his goblet. "Eww…its Coke!" he said.

Jareth looked at him in confusion but it was Sarah who answered. "Of course it is, young man. The two of you are much too young for wine."

Jareth laughed and continued. "Our family was chosen by the Labyrinth to rule this kingdom, and so we alone have the power to rule the goblins."

"Why did the Labyrinth choose us?" Jasmine asked.

"Well, I don't really know. After ten thousand years not even the Labyrinth quite remembers. But so far the arrangement has continued to work out well for everyone." Jareth smiled as Belloch and the three servant goblins appeared bearing steaming serving trays.

Saren had heard enough about goblins to last a lifetime, and she certainly didn't want to talk about them while she ate, so she quickly seized the opportunity to change the subject. "You are quite talented with your instrument, Ryan." She said and Ryan paled as Jasmine struggled not to spew coke through her nose. Even Sarah had trouble keeping a straight face.

"Uh..thank you." He said, smiling sheepishly.

Suddenly a wicked idea flashed in Jasmine's mind. "I've heard Uncle Toby is quite good with his instrument as well." She said.

Saren's eyes brightened. "Oh really?" she asked, looking at Toby expectantly.

Jasmine spooned a portion of what looked like potato salad onto her plate. "Oh yes. I've heard his girlfriends go on and on about Uncle Toby and his instrument."

Toby's face had grown redder and redder as the conversation went on, and now it was bordering on purple. "It's called a guitar." He sputtered, giving his niece his best 'you'll pay for this' look. "And yes, I play, though no where near as well as Ryan."

"Do you sing as well?" she asked, taking a bite of bread.

"Well…yes." Toby admitted, shifting uncomfortably in his chair. He wanted to look at his hands, but he was unable to take his eyes off the captivating elf.

"I would love to hear it sometime." She said softly, the words obviously meant only for him.

Jareth watched the scene playing out before him, mixed emotions battling in his heart. Sarah saw his conflicted expression and took his hand in hers. He turned his attention to her and felt his heart flutter in his chest as she smiled at him. All other thoughts swept aside, he leaned in to kiss her tenderly on the lips before returning to his food.

The twins' eyes darted to the couples on either side of them, then they looked at each other across the table. Rolling their eyes in unison, they went back to enjoying their first meal in their new world.

* * *

A/N: I am sooooo sorry about the delay in this chapter. My goblins are out of school now, and so I don't have a lot of time to write. This chapter is a little shorter than I intended, but I though you'd rather have a shorter one than wait another week for a full one. Anyway, I haven't stopped writing and I haven't fallen off the face of the earth, so don't worry about that. I will finish this story, I promise.

I wish I could shout out to everyone who has reviewed, but then I wouldn't have time to write the story. I do want to thank each and everyone one of you, though. A special thanks to Jessica Arbuckle, whose multiple reviews on a single night motivated me to sit down and write this chapter. Also I would like to thank Amethyst Laney, who never reviews but motivates me through IM. I'm sorry I haven't been around much lately, but I hope a new chapter makes up for it. PS, did you notice the silent Sarah Magic in this chapter? (Think Coke.)


	16. Revelations

Hi everybody! Yes, I'm still alive. The past few months have been really difficult. I'm sure you heard about the little storm called Katrina that nearly wiped my hometown off the face of the globe. I lost family and friends in her aftermath, and quite possibly a bit of my sanity. There have been other, more mundane things, keeping me away from my writing as well, but I won't bore you with the details. I hope that my readers will still remember the story, and maybe I'll draw a few more.

I apologize in advance to any serious students of Celtic Mythology. I have seriously butchered it to fit my story.

Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth (still, dammit.)

* * *

_Sarah stood alone on a hillside, overlooking a meadow that was greener than any place she had ever imagined. The wind blew over the grassy plain like a lover's kiss, and the long green blades bowed low before it. The sun was high in the sky, and in the distance Sarah could hear waves crashing against distant cliffs too far away to be seen. She turned slowly around, seeking some landmark, something to tell her where she was. She instinctively knew that she was nowhere in the Underground. But where she was and, perhaps, she thought, more importantly when she was could not be determined by her surroundings._

_Her unspoken question was answered by a woman who suddenly stood beside her, where a moment ago there had been only more grass. _

_'Long, long ago.' The woman told her, and Sarah regarded her with cautious interest. The woman was quite beautiful, with hair of copper wound in thick braids, a few rebellious strands waving free in the wind. Her eyes were the color of emeralds, and her skin so smooth and pale it seemed as though sunlight had never touched her. Sarah would have recognized that she was Fae even without the shimmering splashes of color that adorned the skin around her eyes._

_'I thought so.' Sarah replied simply, and waited for the other woman to say more. _

_They stood a few minutes in silence, each regarding the meadow and the sky but not each other. Finally, the other woman turned fully to face Sarah, and Sarah obliged by matching her stance._

_'Do you remember me?' The other woman asked, and Sarah tilted her head, searching for the answer. _

_'No.' She said finally. 'But I remember that I should remember you.'_

_The other woman smiled warmly. 'That is more than I expected, Branwen. It has been ere long since last we met.' Gesturing towards the meadow below, she added 'Welcome home.'_

_'My name is Sarah.' Sarah corrected. 'And I do not know this place.'_

_The other woman took her by the hand. 'Search you heart, girl, and you may find otherwise.' _

_It was true, there was a familiarity to the place, to the hillside, even to the sound of the waves crashing against the cliffs. There was a sense of homecoming, though Sarah could not remember ever in her life seeing a place so beautiful._

_'No, not in this life.' the other woman said. 'But once upon a time you ruled this land.'_

_'That's not possible.' Sarah answered, though she knew the futility of the phrase. Had she not learned the fine line between what is not possible and what is anyway? _

_'Shall I help you to remember?' The other said, and Sarah nodded. To her surprise, the other woman sat down in the grass, and Sarah took a seat beside her. The red haired Fae closed her eyes and began to speak, and her voice carried the memories of centuries of longing._

_'Long, long ago," she began, 'There was a race of Fae called the Tuatha de Danann. They had been blessed by the goddess Danu, and because of this they were more beautiful, more powerful, and more evolved than any other race in the Underground. They could fly without ever moving their bodies, control the weather with a thought, stop time and rearrange it. There was only one other Fae race that came close to matching them, but theirs was a wicked and twisted power. These were the Fomorians._

_'The Fomorians convinced the other Fae, and indeed every other race in the Underground, that the Children of Danu would one day enslave them all. Eventually, they were forced to leave the Underground, and they opened a passage to the world above. They found an island, a beautiful green place that shone like a jewel in the ocean. It was inhabited mostly by wee folk, fairies, and a handful of humans. _

_'The Tuatha de Danann came to this land and made it their own, sealing the passage between the worlds. They called their new home Eire, and lived in peace here for many centuries. _

_The children of Danu took pity on the humans of this land and began to nurture them, as loving parents will nurture their children. Soon the humans began to multiply, and their villages covered the island. They saw the Tuatha de Danann as benefactors, and began to worship them as gods, as humans are wont to do. Despite all of our protests, the humans began to erect temples in our honor. This did not escape the notice of the Fomorians, who above all else loved power._

_With the Children of Danu gone, the Fomorians had taken over ruler ship of the Underground races. But they were angry that we had not only found peace in our new home, but were now even more powerful. And so they, too, opened a passage between the worlds, and when they saw their chance, they came through, intent on destroying the Tuatha de Danann once and for all. _

_From that point on, the peace the Tuatha de Danann had once known was shattered, and there was constant fighting between ourselves and the Fomorians. Too often the humans of this land were caught in the middle. You, Branwen, were our queen. It was you who first saw the wisdom of helping the humans of this land. They were as your own children, and it tore at your heart to see them endangered by the war that we had brought to their doorsteps._

_'You called for your greatest advisor, the Lord Taliesin. Gifted with the sight, Taliesin told of a great warrior, half Tuatha, half Fomorian. As a mixture of both dark and light, only he could bring balance to the land and protect the humans._

_'In due time, such a warrior appeared. His name was Finn Ma Caohail, and he was indeed fearsome. Strong and courageous, he defeated any who opposed him in battle. He commanded fierce loyalty in his Finnians, the warriors who followed him. He was powerful in both might and magic, and his beauty was beyond compare, right down to the mismatched eyes that marked him as a child of dark and light.'_

_Here the other woman paused her story, giving Sarah a chance to absorb all that she had just heard. Part of Sarah had listened to the story as though it were just that and nothing more, but another part knew the tale all to well, and Sarah found that terrifying. Still, despite everything else, Sarah's mind was captivated by the description of the warrior, and the red haired Fae smiled a sad, knowing smile before continuing._

_'A measure of peace returned to the land, as the Finnians and their leader stopped the advancement of the Fomorians. The name of Finn Ma Caohail became legendary throughout the isle, and he was celebrated as a great hero by both humans and Tuathans. He was said to be as hard as iron, but the warrior did have one weakness, and that was his love for the Queen. You took him to your bed in secret, hiding your love for him to all but the most observant of eyes. It was these despicable spies that eventually led to our downfall._

_'The Fomorians planned a raid on the largest of the human villages while they knew that you and Finn would be trysting. They attacked under cover of darkness, virtually unopposed. Without their leader the Finnians were powerless to stop them, and the Fomorians over ran the village, slaughtering everyone in it as they slept: men, women, tiny children, all murdered in their sleep. _

_'The next morning news of the massacre reached the halls of Tara. The people were crying out to the Tuatha de Danann, demanding to know why they had been forsaken and left to die. The people blamed you for the tragedy, and moreover you blamed yourself. Wracked with guilt for the part you played, you took your own life.'_

_Again the red haired woman halted her story, as a visibly shaken Sarah closed her eyes and breathed raggedly. She could see it now as though it were happening at this instant. She saw her own reflection in the mirror pale and grief stricken. She watched helplessly as her own arm reached out to grasp the hilt of a sword, and with only a second's hesitation, thrust the blade deep into her own broken heart._

_Sarah gasped, and opened her eyes, heedless of the tears that were streaming down her face. She remembered now, all of it. She remembered the indescribable pain of knowing so many had died for her own indiscretion, and the feeling that she could not live another second in such pain. She remembered Finn's voice as he cried out her name, reaching her too late to stop the fateful plunge of the sword. And she remembered his tears on her skin as she slipped away into nothingness, only to be reawakened in the body of a mortal._

_She laughed humorlessly at the irony of it. To have taken her own life only to come back as a mortal, and then to nearly die once again of a broken heart, only to be reawakened as a Tuathan. She looked again at the red haired woman next to her, and smiled as recognition finally dawned on her._

_'Macha.' She said, smiling softly, and the other woman answered her with an embrace. _

_'There you are, sister.' Macha said. 'Do you remember now?'_

_'I remember everything up to my death.' Sarah said sadly. 'But what happened afterward?'_

_'Finn was stricken with guilt and grief, and he led his army against the Fomorians, destroying all of them. But it wasn't enough, for the humans still blamed him, and us, for the massacre. Finn was cursed, sent to the Underground along with his army without benefit of a proper doorway. He survived the trip, but his army was twisted, changed into a monstrous race of unruly creatures that only he could control. And so the warrior became a king, and to appease the guilt he still felt in his heart, he took it upon himself to continue to protect the children of men from those who would seek to harm them._

_'Jareth's ancestor.' Sarah finished in reverent tones. 'The first Goblin King.' She returned her gaze to Macha. 'And what became of the rest of my people?'_

_Macha looked away. "Many of us were slaughtered by the very humans that once worshiped us. Others like myself chose to fade away, existing now only in the realm of dreams. Only one chose a different path. Taliesin, too, was torn with guilt for what had happened. He had the power to foresee it, and thus possibly stop it, but had been distracted. To make amends, he followed Finn to the Underground. His body was destroyed in the crossing, as were parts of his mind. He exists now in spirit only, bound to the land where he fell, encased in stone and ever changing, with no memory of who he is or what he is. He is bound to the King of Goblins, and vice versa, though neither one remembers why.'_

_At this Macha stood, and Sarah followed her example. Macha clutched Sarah in a tight embrace. 'Now that you know, sister, remember. Do not let the past repeat itself.'_

_Sarah pulled away from the embrace and regarded her dream sister warily. 'Why?' she asked. 'What is happening?'_

_'It is neither my place nor my gift to tell the future, Branwen. All I can do is warn you. But when the time comes, you'll know.' With that, she was gone, and the green meadow began to fade._

* * *

Sarah's eyes flew open and for a moment she didn't know where she was. Then she felt Jareth stir beside her and remembered that they were in his bed, in his room, in the Castle Beyond the Goblin City. She forced herself to remain still, not wanting to disturb him. She reached out with her mind, searching for the entity that she knew would be hovering close by. _Ozzy, are you there?_ She thought, using the nickname she had given him earlier.

The longsuffering sigh inside her mind was the only sign he have her of his presence. She reached out again, this time letting her own mind brush reassuringly against his, the mental equivalent of taking his hand in her own. _Hello, Taliesin_.


	17. No Coincidences

So no updates for five months, and suddenly two updates in as many days. Maybe my writer's block is gone. I hope you like this chapter. Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter, and to all the kind words I received.

Disclaimer: I still don't own the Labyrinth. I blame FEMA.

As happy as the Labyrinth had been to have his family back Underground where they belonged, he had not wished to intrude on their homecoming. As much as he had wanted to start teaching Sarah all the remarkable things she could do with her new powers, he had waited for her to call to him. So they had come, and they had had a nice family dinner together. Then Jareth had taken them on a tour of the castle, showing them first to their own chambers, then to various places of interest around the castle. Ryan had made it no farther than the music room, where a collection of every instrument he could name plus many others he had never seen before waited for his exploration.

They had lost Jasmine in the library, which was at first quite unimpressive. To outward appearances it was merely a room with a fireplace, a desk, a few large chairs and a single bookcase. But as Jasmine was learning, not everything is as it seems in Castle Beyond the Goblin City. Jareth drew her to the bookcase and placed her hand over a crystal that was just barely visible and imbedded into the woodwork. "Now," he had told her, "Speak the name of any book you wish to read."

Jasmine had looked at her father quizzically, and then whispered "'The Once and Future King.'" The bookshelf shimmered quietly, and the books on the shelves began to change, disappearing and replacing themselves with every version of the desired book ever written. Not just the book itself, but every thesis ever written about the book, every story that quoted from the book appeared. Any piece of literature to ever mention 'The Once and Future King' was now available at Jasmine's fingertips.

She squealed with delight and hugged her father fiercely. "What if I don't know the name of the book?" she asked him.

"Then just tell the bookcase the subject you're looking for." He answered, smiling as Sarah slid her arm around his waist.

Jasmine replaced her hand over the crystal. "King Arthur." She breathed, and now not only did the bookcase begin to shimmer, but every wall in the room. When it was done, each wall was lined with bookcases which contained every book that had ever been written about the mythical Celtic king. Jasmine squealed again and began scanning the shelves.

Jareth caught her by the shoulder. "Might I suggest you begin with a different subject matter?" he had asked her, and she raised a shining silver eyebrow but inclined her head. He placed his own gloved fingers over the recessed crystal and spoke. "History of the Goblin Kingdom." Jasmine groaned but he raised his hand to stop her protests. "It might be more interesting than you think." He told her, "However, since you will hardly have any free time once your tutors arrive, I'll leave you to decide what you wish to do with your time until then."

His words were wasted, for Jasmine had already opened the first book on the shelf, and was reading silently to herself. Lost already in the lore of her father's home, she didn't even look up at her parents as she backed herself against the sofa, curling her feet beneath her as she sat down. Jareth smirked knowingly and with a wave of his hand lit a fire in the fireplace, filling the room with a warm glow. Turning on his heel, He left the room, Sarah following silently.

Once back in the hallway he had put his arms around her waist and pulled her close to him, his lips brushing the sensitive skin of her neck. "It's just you and me now, my love." He had whispered, his voice thick with innuendo. "What would you like to see next?" Each word was said slowly, punctuated by his fingers touching each individual button at the front of her blouse.

Sarah had laughed, catching his gloved fingers before they could go any farther. "Does that mean the tour of the castle is over?" she asked him, the silver fire in her eyes beginning to sparkle.

"The tour of the castle is over," he answered, nibbling at the soft flesh behind her ear. "But I have other places to show you." He had led her silently to his own chambers, and to the sound of their laughter the Labyrinth had withdrawn, not wishing to intrude, however silently, on their personal moments together.

And so he had waited. And waited. Hours passed without a call, and he risked a glance inside Sarah's mind only to find that she was sleeping peacefully. Sighing as well as a disembodied spirit can he returned to his vigil outside of Jareth's rooms. The day passed into night, and for want of anything else to do he sought out the minds of the children. They had found each other and made their way to the dining rooms, where they had met up with Toby and Saren, who had spent the day touring the Labyrinth grounds themselves.

Each one wondered in passing where Jareth and Sarah were, but did not seem to be alarmed that they had not joined them for supper. The Labyrinth watched them for a while, wishing he could communicate with someone other than Sarah this far away from the center, before returning to his place outside of Jareth's rooms. A few more hours went by, and the Labyrinth had all but given up when the call finally came. _Ozzy, are you there?_

He entered her mind eagerly, sighing his disapproval of the nickname she had given him, and of the unendurable amount of time he had waited for her call, but he said nothing. Something in her mind had changed, there was a familiar feeling that thrilled and frightened him somehow. He began to draw back warily, but he felt the invisible fingers of her mind brush against him soothingly, and he relaxed. His calm was short lived, however, as her next words struck him like a bolt of lightning. _Hello Taliesin._

Sarah felt the entity of her old advisor withdraw in shock at the sound of his name. She reached out to him, refusing to let him withdraw too far, keeping him with her in her mind. _You remember the name?_ she asked him.

The Labyrinth moved uneasily back and forth in her mind, and Sarah had the vision of a child mournfully digging his toe in the dirt and refusing to look at his mother's face. _Taliesin is a traitor's name_.

_No, old one_. Sarah soothed, her consciousness rising from her body to join the cursed entity. _Not a traitor. A friend, and advisor, who made a mistake and nothing more._

The entity pulled away from her, flying out over the labyrinth, thrashing as he went. Memories were flooding back, painful memories of long ago sorrows, failures that he could not mend, wrongs that he could not make right. Behind him Sarah followed, matching his pace, letting him lead her. He cried out in silent pain, unspoken fury. Thunder crashed in the sky above them, and the wind kicked up violently in the forest below. When he came to the sanctuary at the center of the labyrinth he stopped at last, sobbing so that only Sarah could hear, but the wind eased and the rain came in soft sprinkles.

He turned his attention back to Sarah, his Sarah whom he had loved from the first moment he saw her without understanding why, and now that he did he couldn't bear to face her. _My queen, I failed you. Your death is on my hands._

_I failed myself, old friend. You cannot blame yourself for my shortcomings. _Sarah answered.

_But I saw the danger, Branwen. I saw it, but I turned a blind eye. I hoped that it would not come to pass, I wagered on all our lives, and I lost._

Sarah lowered herself to the sanctuary below, and allowed herself to materialize in a ghostly shimmering form. She appeared not as the dark haired human of this life, but as the silver haired Fae of millennia past. _Come, Taliesin_, she whispered. _We all made mistakes, and we have all paid for them dearly, you perhaps more than anyone else. It is time to let the past go and remember who you are! You are Taliesin, blessed child of Danu, advisor to your queen! I have returned now, old friend. Advise me._

Sarah felt the crackle of magic in the air around her, as before her a shape began to take form. Tall and blond, his eyes the color of violets, a face both strange and achingly familiar began to form. No sooner had he taken his ghostly shape than he fell to one knee before the once and future Queen. "My lady," he whispered. "You have reawakened me. All that was once forgotten returns to my mind. How is this possible?"

Sarah laughed. "You should know better than anyone else how useless that question is, Old One. And it is you who awakened me."

The vision of Taliesin nodded is blond head. "Yes. I saw your soul, reborn in the human child. I saw the queen behind your eyes."

Sarah nodded gravely, and pressed a ghostly hand to her forehead. She was still having difficulty putting the memories of both lives together. Two sets of memories, one much longer than the other, fought for dominance in her mind. Two childhood homes, two sets of parents, two of everything filled her mind, even two lovers with mismatched eyes.

"Am I one or the other?" she asked herself softly. If I embrace the one does the other cease to be?"

The vision of Taliesin drew his cloak tightly around himself, assuming once again his role as advisor to the queen. "You are both." He said. "There cannot be one without the other."

Sarah nodded her understanding. "Macha came to me in my dreams." She began. "She told me that I had to remember the past, so that it would not repeat itself."

Taliesin furrowed his brow at this information. "The dead do not cross easily into the dreams of the living. She would not have risked such a journey lightly."

"Do you know what it means?" she asked him hopefully.

"I do not. The path before us is dark to my eyes, and my vision is clouded. Only time can take away the mists. I do know that fate has brought you back to us, and where fate is concerned there are no coincidences."

Sarah returned to her body, her troubled mind soothed instantly by the warmth of Jareth's arms around her. She snuggled closer to him, and in his sleep he pulled her tighter against his chest. Sarah sighed happily. Whatever fate had in store for Branwen, Queen of the Tuatha de Danann, she would face it when it came. For now she was content to be just Sarah, wife of Jareth, mother to Jasmine and Ryan. She drifted back to sleep then, and she did not dream.


	18. Pillow Talk

Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth, Jareth, or Sarah. Or a Lexus.

* * *

It was mid morning when Sarah awoke and the sun streamed in across her face from the balcony window. She groaned and pulled a pillow over her head to block out the intrusion.

The pillow smelled of Jareth, and this made her smile. She rolled toward the spot he had occupied the night before and reached out only to find empty space. A moment of irrational panic seized her, and it took all the strength of her will to calm her pounding heart and bring her breathing under control. _Get a hold of yourself, girl._

She yawned and sat up on the edge of the bed, taking in her surroundings. She had been much too distracted the night before to take much note of the room where Jareth had led her. Now she followed every detail of the room, smiling at the little touches that were uniquely Jareth, such as the myriad candles that lined every corner of the room.

"Candles" he had once told her, "are the only form of pure light that don't come to us from the sky. They make their own magic." She smiled at the memory. It had been the night of her seventeenth birthday, and he had given her an ivory white candle molded in the shape of an owl. _That's not all he gave you_, she thought, and smiled mischievously.

Owls were also a predominant theme in the room. They were carved into the mahogany mantle over the fireplace, paintings of them adorned the walls, and a sweetly familiar cloak of downy white owl feathers was slung lazily over a nearby chair.

As Sarah's gaze fell from one visual delight to the next, her eyes were drawn to the portrait hanging over the fireplace. There was no mistaking who the subject of the painting was. Hew own face smiled back at her dreamily, her own eyes seeming to stare at some far away place. It was a beautiful likeness, and Sarah was astounded by the talent necessary to create such detailed work. More astonishing still was the scene it portrayed. She was in the crème colored princess gown her mother had given her, her hair piled atop her head in loose and messy braids. By her side was Merlin, the shaggy companion of her youth. They were standing on the stone bridge in the park where she had so often played when she was younger. Over her shoulder, in the low branches of a tall oak tree, sat a large white owl, watching her with hooded lids.

She was so mesmerized by the painting that she hadn't heard the door open or realized that she was no longer alone until Jareth's voice purred softly in her ear. "The first time I ever saw you." He murmured, burying his face in her hair.

"I had no idea you were there that day." She answered. "I hadn't even called you yet."

"That's true." He told her. "I've often wondered what called me to you that day. I suppose that just by reading the Red Book with such passion you must have invoked my magic."

Sarah turned to face him, a puzzled frown on her face. "Had that ever happened before?" She wondered.

"Well, no." he conceded.

"Mine wasn't the only copy of the Red Book." She continued. "Surely there were other teenage girls who fantasized about the Labyrinth, about you. Why would you have been called to me?"

Jareth smiled. "A happy coincidence?" he offered, and then frowned when he caught the look on her face. "Why does this upset you?"

Sarah had been distracted, her thoughts running wild, but at the sound of his voice she looked up at him and smiled. "I'm not upset." She assured him, pulling him to her in a warm embrace, but in the back of her mind Taliesin's warning hung heavy in the air. _There are no coincidences._ She squelched her eyes closed against Jareth's shoulder, blocking out the myriad of thoughts struggling for attention, and concentrated on his warmth and his strength. _My rock_, she thought.

This brought up a new question, and she clung to him tighter. "Where did you go this morning?" she asked, her eyes still closed.

He raised his hand to stroke her cheek. "The tutors will be arriving this evening." He told her. "I wanted to finalize their arrangements." He watched her as she took a deep breath and frowned. "You weren't worried, were you?" he asked.

"Worried?" she laughed faintly, still clinging to his shoulder. "No, only mildly terrified. But just for a minute."

"Oh, Sarah." He sighed, resting his chin on the top of her head. "Don't you know I'll never leave you again?" he asked.

_Until it's for my own good_, she thought bitterly, but pushed the thought quickly from her mind. What she actually said was "I'm sorry, I couldn't help it." The phrase came out sounding like a petulant child, and Jareth couldn't help but laugh.

He kissed the top of her head. "No, I'm sorry. I should have told you where I was going. I just didn't want to disturb you, you were sleeping so peacefully. Now come, I want to show you something." He tried to pull her toward the door, but she held firmly to his arm and kept him beside her.

"Wait, Jareth, I need to talk to you." She said, biting her bottom lip as she wondered just how much of her dream from the night before he could take all at once.

Jareth frowned. "Sarah, is something wrong?" he asked, and the hint of worry in his eyes brought a warm smile to her lips.

"No." she hesitated, still trying to decide just how much to tell him.

Jareth bent closer to her, his voice conspiratorial. "You're not pregnant are you?" he asked, one eyebrow lifted curiously.

Sarah's eyes widened as they moved to meet his. "What? No!" she said quickly, then bit her lip again as she remembered a very important detail that had been neglected up until now. _Great, something new to worry about_. "At least I don't think so. We haven't really been doing anything to prevent it you know. But still, it's much too soon to tell. I suppose…" she would have continued to ramble had Jareth not put a finger to her lips.

"Shhh." He chuckled. "I was only kidding. What did you really want to talk about?"

"Oh." She said, flustered now and angry with herself for getting flustered. _Jeez, Sarah, stop acting like a school girl with a crush_. She took a deep breath and reminded herself what she had intended to say. She paused for a moment, wondering where to begin. She took one of his gloved hands in her own, stroking the soft leather with her fingertips. She looked up into his eyes and found him watching her, studying her.

There was something in his eyes she had never seen before. _No_, she corrected herself, _it was always there, I just didn't know what I was seeing_. Suddenly, her heart was beating fast all over again, and she knew exactly where to begin.

"Jareth," she started, "Have you ever heard the name Finn Ma Caohail?"

Jareth cocked his head to the side and regarded her strangely. He searched the long passages of his memory for the name, knowing that he had heard it before. Finally it came to him, and he slapped himself mentally for having taken so long to think of it. "The first Goblin King." Jareth answered. "Finn Ma Caohail Baaleron."

"Baaleron?" Sarah breathed. "Was that always part of his name, or did he add it later?"

"I don't know" Jareth answered. "I can't imagine why he would have chosen the name. It means 'cursed one.'"

"Cursed one!" Sarah was shocked. "Then why on earth has your family kept it all these years?"

Jareth shrugged. "It was our name. Why would we change it?" he smiled mischievously at her. "Besides, it adds to the mystique."

Sarah shook her head. "Anyway," she sighed, "What do you know about him?"

Jareth frowned, wondering why Sarah was suddenly so interested in his family tree, and for that matter, where she had heard his ancestor's name in the first place. He turned towards the fireplace, his eyes studying Sarah's portrait as he spoke. "As I said, he was the first Goblin King. He built this castle, the foundations of it anyway. No one knows where he came from before that, and not even the Labyrinth seems to remember which one of them was here first." He paused, and even his fingers which had been idly fingering the mantelpiece stilled as he became lost in his thoughts.

Sarah moved beside him, resting her hand lightly on his arm. "Jareth? Are you okay?"

At the sound of her voice Jareth looked down at her and smiled, as though he had forgotten for a moment that she was there. "I was just thinking." He said. "There is a portrait of him in the large dining hall. I haven't really looked at it in years, but I remember thinking that he looked so….sad. Haunted almost."

Sarah resisted the part of her that wanted to run to the dining hall and see the portrait for herself. Instead she asked another question. "And Branwen? Have you ever heard that name before?"

"Ah, Branwen!" Jareth smiled, and his pensive mood seemed to lift. "When Seth and I were little, my father used to tell us stories about Queen Branwen. She was quite amazing, actually. Pity she was just a myth."

Sarah smiled, thinking of the kind of fairy tales Fae king might tell his children. "How can you be so sure she was a myth?" she asked, her smile turning wicked. "After all, you were just a myth until you stole my brother."

Jareth feigned a hurt expression, but his eyes were playful as he grabbed Sarah around the waist. "How many times must I tell you that I did not steal your brother, I merely did as you wished?" he demanded.

"At least once more." She answered, and squealed as he threw her over his shoulder and carried her back to the bed. She pretended to struggle as he threw her to the bed and positioned himself over her, laughing as he easily overpowered her and held her with her arms pinned over her head. He smirked in triumph and released her arms, but continued to sit astride her, holding her down.

Sarah twined her hand in his shirt and pulled him towards her, and he eagerly complied, covering her lips with his own. He rolled off of her, but the kiss lingered as hands began searching for something to do. When he finally released her lips she sighed, and her hand began stroking the side of his face. He closed his eyes and leaned into the caress, giving himself over to her.

Suddenly her mind returned to their accidental conversation a few moments earlier, and she frowned thoughtfully. "How would you feel if I was?" She asked, not bothering to explain the sudden jump in her train of thought.

Jareth opened his eyes, momentarily confused before finally realizing what she meant. He laughed lightly, and the playful gleam returned to his eyes. "I suppose I would learn to knit." He answered with mock solemnity before returning to the game.

* * *

I promise, next chapter they will leave the bedroom. Thanks for the reviews! 


	19. Mutual Misunderstandings

I'd like to apologize to all my loyal readers for the general crapiness of the last couple of chapters. I hope this one makes up for it. After all that's happened the last few months it was hard to get back into the swing of writing, but I think I'm almost back to normal now. Thanks for sticking with me, I love you all

Disclaimer: Lemme see, nope, still not mine.

* * *

Ryan sat on the floor of the music room, plucking gingerly at a strange five stringed instrument he had found there. It was shaped like a figure eight, hollow in the middle, and made of some light wood he had never seen before. It had caught his interest, and though he was determined to master it, it was proving far more difficult than he had first believed. For one thing, it seemed to have no real chord progression, at least not one he was familiar with. The scales that came so easily to him on the guitar were useless. And of coarse there were no "Learn to Play the Strange New Thing in 3 Easy Lessons" books anywhere to be found.

Undaunted, Ryan tried a new fingering, only to be rewarded with a discordant whining that was somewhere between a cow in labor and a cat drowning in sour milk. He sighed, running his fingers through his shaggy hair. He had been at it most of the night, sleeping only a few hours before getting up to try again. Now his stomach was growling, his fingers hurt, he was bone weary and no closer to figuring the damn thing out that he was twelve hours ago. He frowned, staring at the offensive instrument with distaste.

"Not giving up, I hope?" a gentle voice said from the doorway. Ryan looked up and smiled at his sister, who was positively radiant this morning. Of course he couldn't tell her that.

"What's with the dress, Jas?" he asked, grateful for the excuse to stand up and put away the now hated instrument.

"You like it?" she smiled, spinning around in a circle, allowing the skirt to billow around her. "I found it lying across the chair in my room this morning. Isn't it beautiful?"

"You look like one of the elves in 'Lord of the Rings'." He told her, and she responded by sticking out her tongue, even though that was exactly the look she had been trying for and was pleased that he noticed.

As he turned towards her she giggled. "I wouldn't be talking about my clothes if I were you." She said.

Ryan frowned and looked down. "What are you talking about, I look great." He said. As a matter of fact, he had found an outfit laid out for him this morning as well, something very similar to his father's wardrobe. He had put the shirt on gladly, a black number with puffy sleeves and an open chest with only a few ruffles. It was light and comfortable and, he had to admit, made him look like a sexy beast. The pants, however, were a different story. He felt he had compromised enough since coming underground, there was no way he was wearing tights. Tossing the tights, he had thrown on a pair of black jeans and then eyed the black leather boots that had been placed on the floor next to his own combat boots. True, the toes were almost pointy and the cuffs came nearly to his knees, but they made the shirt look so nice. In the end he had put the old combat boots in the closet and headed to the full length mirror in his new kicks.

He had admired the faint traces of glitter that were forming around his eyes and in his hair before looking himself up and down and deciding something was missing. He thought hard on the subject, then with a smile he pulled a crystal out of the air. Heady with this accomplishment, he had attempted to twirl it on his fingertips as he had seen his father do, nearly dropping it several times in the process. Finally he had given that up for the time being, and tossed the crystal into the air, where it transformed into a silky red sash. Pleased beyond words, he drew the sash around his waist and tied it to the side. _Perfect_, he thought, before strutting away down the hall.

He was still feeling good about the outfit, and as such was completely befuddled by his sister's sudden outburst of laughter. He raised his eyebrow in his best imitation of Jareth. "What?" he demanded once again.

Jasmine struggled to control herself long enough to answer, finally managing to squeeze out a single word before doubling over once again. "Yaaarrrr."

Ryan furrowed his brown in confusion before looking down at his attire once again. Finally he saw himself as Jasmine did, and sighed. "Damn." He agreed.

Before he could do anything about the matter, however, they were interrupted by a rather distracted Belloch. "Your Highnesses," he huffed, bowing to each of them before continuing. "There is a delegate here from the Labyrinth demanding an audience with the King."

"Demanding?" Ryan complained, but Jasmine waved him off, bending slightly to address the goblin.

"Have you informed King Jareth?" she asked.

Belloch fumbled with his hands a bit before answering. "I tried, Your Highness, but when I approached his chamber door he threw something at it and threatened me with the bog."

"I see." Jasmine said, stifling a smile.

"Ewww." Ryan added, doing nothing to stifle his scowl.

Jasmine rolled her eyes. "What about Saren?" she asked. "Has she been informed?"

"Yes, Highness." Belloch smiled, pleased that he had finally done something right. "It was the Lady Saren that sent me to fetch King Ryan."

Ryan had lost interest in the conversation up to that point, leaving it for Jasmine to handle, and was plucking at a less intimidating instrument. At the mention of his name, however, his head snapped up. Jasmine laughed at his put-upon expression. "You heard him, Ryan. Your presence is required."

"What? I don't know anything about delegations!" he complained. "Can't you deal with it Jasmine?"

Jasmine shook her head. "I'm not the Goblin King, Ryan, you are. So go do your job."

Ryan growled, mumbling something about useless sisters and absentee parents, but motioned for Belloch to lead the way.

* * *

Three figures sat alone in the throne room, awaiting an audience with the king. One of these spoke now, his hat in his hands and his shaggy tail wagging timidly. "Master Hoggle, are you sure challenging King Jareth is the wisest course? After all, it was His Majesty who asked us to watch over Lady Sarah in the first place, surely he would allow no harm to come to her. And the Labyrinth said…"

"Oh, the Labyrinth said, the Labyrinth said!" Hoggle interrupted, frustration coloring his voice. "Didymus, if the Labyrinth tells ya to jump off a bridge I bet ya'd go and do it."

The little fox furrowed his furry brow in consternation. "I cannot imagine why the Labyrinth would say such a thing, but I suppose if he did…"

"Oh, nevermind." Hoggle interrupted again. "It doesn't matter. All I knows is, Sarah went to find Jareth, and we ain't seen her since. If he's hurt her again I'll….I'll…"  
"You'll what?" a chillingly familiar voice finished for him, and for all his earlier bravado, Hoggle found himself cowering against Ludo.

* * *

Ryan and Jasmine had followed Belloch down the stairs, meeting Toby and Saren in the antechamber to the throne room.

"There you are, sire." Saren said, bowing. "There is a delegation here requesting an audience with the king."

"Demanding one, I hear." Ryan responded, pulling the sash from around his waist and tossing it back into the netherworld he had pulled it from. It wouldn't do to face his first challenge as king dressed as a pirate. "What do I need to do?" he asked.

"They aren't nobility, just one old knight and two other denizens from inside the Labyrinth. There is no real protocol to follow, just be yourself. But, uh…try to be civil. I'll be close by if anything happens."

As Saren spoke, Jasmine summoned a crystal and used it to conjure a high collared black cape, which she placed over Ryan's' shoulders. Standing back she smiled.

"There, that looks better."

Ryan grinned. "Thanks Jas." Then, taking a deep breath, he added, "Here goes nothing." and stepped through the archway just in time to hear the comments of the dwarf standing before the throne.

* * *

Hoggle continued to cower against his rock conjuring friend as he watched the King stride purposefully toward his throne. It was Didymus who stepped forward, bowing as he did so. "Your Majesty, what my companion meant to say…"

For the third time Didymus was interrupted as the King spoke once again. "I heard what your companion said, and I believe he meant it exactly as he said it. Or didn't you, dwarf?" He said, sitting as regally as he knew how upon the gilded throne.

Hoggle's ears perked up at this. Jareth had called him many things in the past, but never simply "Dwarf." Somehow this made him forget his fear and remember his anger. "What did you do with Sarah?" he demanded to know.

It was now Ryan's turn to be confused. "How do you know Queen Sarah?" he asked.

_Queen Sarah?_ The three companions thought at once, but Hoggle continued undaunted. "What does ya mean, how do I knows her? You know good and well how I knows her. And if you've harmed one hair on her head…"

Ryan smiled, despite himself and slumped back into the throne. "Why would I harm my own mother?" To his surprise the dwarf looked at him as though he had turned purple, and took a few steps closer to the throne.

"Hey, you ain't Jareth." Hoggle said, now completely confused. "Who are you, and what have you done with King Jareth?"

Ryan laughed outright at this. "A second ago you seemed ready to kill him yourself, and now you're concerned about his welfare?"

Didymus had moved closer to judge for himself that that this was not his King, and as the realization hit him, he surprised everyone by leaping between Ryan and Hoggle with his sword drawn. "Imposter!" he shouted, the tip of his sword barely reaching Ryan's knee. Evidently unfazed be this, he continued. "As knight of the realm, I call thee out.

Immediately Saren and Toby entered the room, flanking Ryan on each side, both with swords drawn. "Put down your weapon and stand down." Saren said.

"Never!" Didymus said, shaking his sword for good measure.

"We will disarm you if necessary!" Saren continued, taking a step forward.

Hoggle tugged on Didymus tunic. "Uh, Didymus, maybe you should listen to them." He said, trying to pull the little fox back.

"I shall not stand aside!" Didymus answered, shrugging Hoggle off. "Not until this usurper gives up the throne and tells us what he's done with King Jareth!"

Ryan stood, wishing heartily for his sash back and a chandelier to swing away on. He decided to try to diffuse the situation. "Look, there's obviously been a misunderstanding.." he began, but Didymus advanced on him as he tried to take a step forward, his little sword flashing upward and striking Ryan in the kneecap. "Hey!" he cried. "That hurt!"

Saren advanced again, raising her sword to protect the young king, but Toby caught her wrist. At the same moment, Jasmine emerged from the doorway where she had been watching and stood between the elf queen and the aging knight.

"Wait!" they both cried at once, and Saren looked at them with fury in her eyes.

"What is the meaning of this?" she asked, scowling.

"Ryan's right, Queen Saren. I don't think these three meant any harm." Jasmine said, turning to face the three companions. "Did you?" she asked them.

"Sawah!" Ludo cried, bounding towards her and throwing his large arms around her, causing her to stumble backwards in surprise. Toby caught her before she could fall and she couldn't help but laugh as the lumbering beast hung its head low. "Sowwy." He said.

"My Lady?" Didymus said softly, looking up at the young princess. "Is it truly you?"

"No." Hoggle answered for her. "That ain't Sarah. She looks like Sarah, but she's taller than her, and younger. And..and..look at her eyes, Didymus!" he said.

Didymus did as he was told, and gasped. "How is this possible?" he wondered. "Thou hast such similar visage to My Lady and yet thou hast His Majesty's eyes? What witchery is this?"

Jasmine smiled, taking pity on the poor creature. "It is no witchery, brave sir knight." She said. "Is it not common for a child to bear features of both her parents?"

"Parents!" Hoggle exclaimed. "But..but that would mean…"

"Yes, explain to us all exactly what that would mean, won't you Hoghead?" All eyes in the room turned toward the sound of Jareth's voice as he strode through the archway.

"It's Hoggle!" Hoggle corrected, emphasizing each syllable, but secretly glad for the error. Now he knew he was talking to the Jareth he knew and feared.

"Oh, of course, Higgle, how silly of me. And I see you've met my children." He continued, indicating the children in question. "Allow me to present Princess Jasmine and King Ryan." He had been walking toward the throne but stopped a few paces short, tilting his head and eyeing his son quizzically. "Interesting choice," he said to Ryan, "But its missing something." He conjured a crystal and blew on it, causing it to shatter into a puff of glitter, leaving behind a silver chain that hung from his fingertips. At the end of the chain was a talisman identical to the one that hung around his own neck.

"The crest of the Goblin King." Didymus breathed.

"Quite right, Didymus." Jareth agreed. "And now it belongs to you, my son. Ryan stepped forward and bent his head slightly as Jareth placed the chain over his head and adjusted it around his neck. "There." Jareth said, valiantly hiding the lump in his throat. "That's better."

Remembering that his sword was still drawn, Didymus immediately dropped it to the floor and fell to his knees before the throne. "Your Majesty," he said, addressing Ryan, "I have made a grievous error, and one for which I know I must die."

Ryan stared wide eyed at the brave little fox, and then looked up at his father for guidance. Jareth was standing with his hands on his hips and offering no help, so he looked around the rest of the room, his eyes finally coming to rest on his mother, who was standing unnoticed at the back of the room. As he looked at her the right words seem to come to him naturally. "Brave Sir Didymus, it would not be in the best interests of my Kingdom to do away with such a loyal subject, misplaced though your loyalty might have been."

Didymus looked up at the young king in surprise. "It wouldn't?" he asked, astonished.

"Not to mention that his mother would kill him if he executed one of her champions." Jareth added, pointing to the back of the room.

"My Lady!" Didymus exclaimed, no doubt in his mind that this was his Sarah. He skittered towards her, Hoggle and Ludo close on his heels, and she smiled as she knelt down to accept their hugs.

"I'm sorry I left so abruptly." She told them. "There was so much going on, but I should have taken the time to explain things better."

"I should say so, Little Missy." Hoggle chided. "For starters, you can explain that." He motioned towards the throne where Jareth, Jasmine and Ryan were watching their reunion with amusement.

"Well…" she began but Hoggle held up his hand.

"Never mind, I don't think I want to know the details." He told her, and she laughed.

"Fair enough, Hoggle." She told him, and then drew the three of them into another hug. "I've missed you all so much! How have you been?"

Didymus had recovered from his brush with death and was now bouncing with excitement. "Fair Lady, we are a thousand times better now that thou hast returned safely to us."

"Ludo happy!" Ludo added.

"There's something different about you, though." Hoggle said, his eyes narrowed.

Sarah smiled and fingered the lock of silver that hung in front of her face. "Oh, this?" she said. "It's nothing."

"I don't mean the hair, Little Lady." Hoggle said, and pulled her closer so that he was speaking into her ear. "There's something different _inside_ you."

Sarah drew back and looked at him curiously before speaking. "Not different, Hoggle. Just awake now." She told him.

"Ah." He said, and nodded as though this made perfect sense.

* * *

"You did well, son." Jareth said, smiling proudly at Ryan.

"Thanks." Ryan answered, fingering the silver talisman that lay cool against his chest. "It was touch and go there for a minute. Who are they anyway?" he asked, nodding his head toward his mother's companions.

"If I had to guess." Toby answered, "I would say they were Hoggle, Ludo, and Sir Didymus, the champions who helped her defeat the Labyrinth."

Jareth smirked. "Ah, she mentioned them, did she?"

Toby laughed. "To be honest I'm a bit surprised to see them all standing and relatively whole. To hear Sarah tell it they were instrumental in helping her beat you. I would have thought you'd be furious."

Jareth laughed. "I was...distracted." he said.


	20. Time Flies

Time to get this show on the road. Thanks to everyone who reviewed, I love you all. You keep me motivated.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Labyrinth, Sarah, Jareth, Toby, or any of the creatures or characters seen in that movie. I also don't own the Gaelic language, but I did a fine job of butchering it in the text below.

Time went by, as time does now and then, even in the Underground. The tutors had indeed arrived that very day, much to the chagrin of the Twins, who had been enjoying their free time. They quickly learned that although their new studies sounded more exciting than their old ones, advanced spellcasting could be just as boring as advanced algebra if taught by the right person. Drill after drill after magical drill drained them of the joy they had once felt even with the simple conjuration of a crystal, but at least had left them looking much more Fae for their efforts.

Their studies in royal protocol were even worse. Never in their worst nightmares could they have imagined that being royalty would mean having to follow so many rules. Bow here but not there, use eye contact with this person, avoid eye contact with that person, smile at this, frown at that. Ryan felt almost sorry for Jasmine. In his kingdom, at least, and among his subjects, protocol seemed to be whatever he felt like at the time. It was as wild and unpredictable as the Labyrinth itself, and that suited him just fine. Jasmine, on the other hand, would eventually be taken to live in Chead Cathair, the "Rainbow City by the Sea." It sounded like just the place for her, but he knew she would be forced to live by these ridiculous rules night and day once the entire Court was watching. He shuddered just thinking about it.

Then there were the history lessons. At first Jasmine had been excited to learn the history of the Underground. History had been one of her favorite subjects in the "old days". After all, what was history but a collection of stories? She soon realized, however, that there was a big difference between learning about a country that had existed for three hundred years and that of an entire world that no one could remember the beginning of. There was no time for stories, just fact, after fact after fact. Even the parts that directly concerned members of her family were for the most part dull.

At least she tried to pay attention, which is more than she could say for Ryan. He had used the time as an opportunity to practice his "crystal charming" as he called it, and after five months had become quite good at it. He could twirl them, he could spin them, he could float them away and call them back again. Of course, he didn't know the difference between King Oberon the Great and King Boron the Smelly, but this didn't seem to bother him in the least. Some things never changed.

There were many other things to be learned, some slightly more interesting that watching paint dry, but not by much. Geography of the Underground had been challenging, because while place names were generally simply a statement of description (i.e. Rainbow City by the Sea, Castle Beyond the Goblin City, Great Mountains beyond the Wastelands, etc.) they were usually so named in a language that neither of the twins spoke (i.e. Chead Cathair, Caislean Ufaer Cathair, Sliabh Dramhail.) This had prompted Jareth to send for a linguistics tutor, which led to a whole new level of boredom.

The only class that Ryan and Jasmine looked forward to was defense class. Saren had been true to her word and agreed to teach the twins to fight. Sarah had been steadfastly against it at first, with both her own inner problems and the sight of thousands of graves surrounding the Labyrinth prompting her to want to keep her children as far away from pointy objects as possible. It took a great deal of persuasion on the part of Jareth and Saren to sway her. Eventually, it was Toby that convinced her. "Sar," he had told her, "The kids are what they are, where they are. You made them and you brought them to this place. You can't protect them from that by refusing to let them learn to defend themselves." With a heavy sigh and a heavier heart she had reluctantly agreed, and the lessons had begun.

Saren had been delighted to discover that like magic and unlike protocol, warcraft seemed to come naturally to the children. They learned differently, and gravitated towards different weapons, but they were quick to learn and slow to become discouraged. Jasmine displayed a particular aptitude for the bow, and within a few short weeks was better with it than Saren herself. She had more difficulty with the rapier, but soon mastered it as well. Ryan learned his way around the bow easily enough, and the rapier as well, but it was the broadsword that he excelled at.

Saren had been so pleased with their progress that she had advanced them much more quickly than she had expected to. She taught them to fight with armor on, adding one piece at a time. Ryan had balked at these lessons at first, proclaiming them unnecessary. Saren did not respond, but instead had wordlessly advanced on him, bringing her sword down in a powerful arc. Ryan had countered the blow easily, but the weight of his black leather breastplate had thrown him off balance, sending him headlong into the redthorn bushes at the edge of the sparring ground. He had glared mournfully at the Elf Queen while picking thorns out his tender flesh, but he had not questioned her again.

Once they had learned to fight with and without armor, Saren began the dangerous task of teaching them to alternate physical attacks with magical ones. The twins were eager to practice the offensive magic that they had been drilled on but never allowed to use by their magic tutor, and Saren at times had difficulty controlling them. Fae magic was, after all, quite a bit different from elf magic. And the twins possessed magic that was stronger than most and unique to the Baalerons. Although Saren had known Jareth's family all her life, and had almost married his brother, their magic remained a mystery to her. It seemed as uncontrollable as the Goblins themselves. She wondered if the magic tutor felt as underqualified as she did. She might have been surprised to learn that the tutor in question was absolutely terrified of the children.

Finally, she had taught them to fight on horseback. At last they were back on even ground, for Ryan and Jasmine had never so much as seen a live horse before coming to the Underground, let alone ridden one, and they were instantly intimidated by the animals. Jareth had brought back a pair of stallions from his last trip to Chead Cathair especially for this purpose, his own stables having been depleted during the war. One white, one black, the animals were gentle, but spirited, and blessedly patient. These lessons proved to be the most difficult for the twins, but the most rewarding as well.

They overcame their fear of the animals quickly enough, and soon developed a bond with them. Saren had taught them that the animals would become an extension of themselves, much as their weapons had already become, and while the twins doubted at first, they were surprised to discover how quickly it happened. The horses seemed to know what to do before they did, turning when it was necessary, stopping short, picking up pace. They anticipated the need for such a change before their riders had a chance to relay it.

Toby often joined their lessons, firmly believing that a Knight of the Realm should possess the skills to defend said realm. He wasn't as quick as the twins, but was perhaps more eager to learn. While he enjoyed training with his niece and nephew, he preferred his one to one training, and more often than not he and Saren could be found sparring with each other as the sun set low over the Labyrinth.

From time to time, Saren left for a few days to return home. She did, after all, have a kingdom of her own to run. Jareth proclaimed these days holidays for the twins, feeling that if they had to be deprived of their favorite class, they shouldn't be forced to continue the ones they disliked. This act partially redeemed him in the eyes of his children, who had yet to forgive him for adding linguistics to their list of nightmares.

Toby often accompanied the Elf Queen on her journeys, and the twins would have liked to have gone as well. However, when they broached the subject with their parents Sarah went into hysterics and Jareth, a bit more calmly, agreed with her. Their safety couldn't be guaranteed, not even in Saren's company, and he would not risk his children's lives for the sake of a vacation.

Sarah, for her part, marked the passing time somberly, spending much of her days perched on her balcony watching life take place below her. She felt torn, as though she was two different people in two different worlds, and neither could reconcile itself with the other. She had not told Jareth what she had learned about herself, and indeed had not even mentioned it to him again since that first night. What could she tell him? How could she make him understand something she could not completely understand herself. Instead she hid the growing sense of foreboding, passing it off as some half remembered terror from a past life she was growing increasingly to resent.

The thought had occurred to her that Jareth might be of some comfort to her if he knew what she was going through, might even understand more than she gave him credit for. But he was busy, his duties as High King taking their toll on him. He had gone to Chead Cathair a few short weeks after returning to the Underground, and it was obvious that things had not gone well. Squabbling, he had told her, and petty backbiting had marred any attempts at serious discussion. He had gone back several times since then, and while he claimed to be making progress, he was seldom in a good mood when he returned. He was always happy to see her, and welcomed her arms around him upon his return. But if he noticed that she had become withdrawn, he didn't mention it, and she saw no reason to bring more trouble to his door.

She hated it when he was gone. The castle seemed empty and, if she had to admit it, a little frightening. The halls echoed with her loneliness, and the unknown danger that haunted her thoughts seemed almost palpable when Jareth was away. Valerent had returned to the castle two days after their arrival, and greeted his new Queen and her children with thinly veiled distaste, and refused to even make eye contact with Toby. So far he had maintained a respectful distance, but Sarah could feel his eyes on her all the time, and the feeling worsened when Jareth was gone.

Taliesin was her only true confidant during these long months, the only other being who truly understood what she was going through, and he was in no better shape than Sarah. While he now remembered who he was and how he had come to be what he was, there was still vital information missing from his memory. He shared Sarah's sense of foreboding, but was powerless to understand it. His vision was cloudy, giving him only abstract pieces of information that made very little sense. He saw danger ahead, and even death, but was powerless to do anything about it. He felt it had something to do with their past, but Sarah was no help. Her memories of her past life were scattered and tumultuous, and when they did try to resurface she resisted.

And so she struggled with the turmoil inside her, with the duality of her mind, with the nameless fear that hounded her every waking moment, with the dread that pervaded her thoughts each time she cast her eyes beyond the Labyrinth at the thousands of graves that lay there. That was the key, somehow she knew. That was the last piece of the puzzle, if she could only figure out how it fit. Somehow the past and PAST and the present and the future shared a common point with that awful field of stone.

But tonight, just one month before Jareth's official coronation as High King, a smile touched Sarah's lips, as the soft wind caressed her cheek. Jareth had been gone for eight days, but he was coming home tonight, and had vowed not to leave her again until he could take her with him. She looked out over the great expanse of land beyond the Labyrinth and sent out her thoughts, seeking his reassuring presence, and felt his mind far away at the very limits of her reach. He was close enough for her to feel now, and she breathed a sigh of relief. Her King would be home soon, and her heart beat faster as her anticipation grew. She let her mind touch his, and felt a surge of warmth as he connected with her as well. She perched herself on the balcony ledge, her knees pulled to her chest, and kept watch on the horizon for a great white owl making his way back home.


	21. The Dark Lady of Fanan Dubh

Another day, another chapter. Time to reveal the bigger big bad. Thanx for the reviews, and much love to you all!

Disclaimer: I still own nothing.

* * *

Allyndriel paced restlessly in the garden, winding her fingers through the ends of her long white hair, one pale lip caught thoughtfully between her teeth. She paused in her contemplation to stare balefully at the crumpled parchment that lay on the ground where she had thrown it shortly after reading it. _Why_, she wondered painfully. _Why now? I need more time, damn it!_ She bent toward the note, hesitating as her fingertips brushed it. She could almost imagine them burning as if the thing were coated in acid. With a sigh of exasperation she clutched the note and smoothed it out, reading its dreadful words once more.

_Allyndriel,_

_I am sending Goewin to retrieve you. We must discuss your progress, or lack thereof. Do not try to put me off, and rid yourself of that disgusting glamour before you arrive, or I will rid you of it permanently. _

_With Regards,_

_Mother_

Allyndriel crumpled the note again, bringing it to her forehead in her clenched fist as she wailed at the moon and trees and flowers and wretched fairies and anything else within earshot of the unfairness of it all. She had been given a job to do, and she was doing all she could to accomplish it. "Oh, why can't mother just leave me alone and let me do things my way?" She wondered aloud, to no one in particular.

Perhaps that is why she paled considerably when she received a reply. "Because she is concerned that you are not focused enough on your task." Allyndriel turned slowly, not wanting to face what she knew was behind her. Goewin was taller than she by nearly a foot, with hair the color of the night sky that hung in one shimmering ebony wave to the center of his back, and eyes that glimmered with the same inky darkness, so that the whites of his eyes seemed diminutive by comparison. His cruel beauty made her cringe, and he sneered. "Are you so sickened by the sight of your own brother, Allyndriel?" he wondered.

"Not sickened, Goewin." She answered, her voice tremulous, "Merely surprised." She lifted her chin in a valiant yet feeble attempt to regain her dignity, and some control over the situation. She knew that her brother was keenly aware that he terrified her, but it was far easier for her if she pretended he didn't.

"And why should you be surprised, Allyndriel, when my arrival was announced by the note you hold in your hand even now?" he asked, one dark eyebrow raised, his black eyes seeming to see into her soul. He walked towards her, and she held her ground, determined not to slink away from his touch as he took the crumpled correspondence from her trembling hand. Smoothing it out against his chest, he shook his head mournfully. "Why sister dear, one would think you didn't want to see your family." He scolded her, holding the abused paper towards her as proof.

"No, Goewin, it's not that." She lied. "I just question the timing of it."

He tilted his head, as though considering her words. "We have not seen you in Fanan Dubh for years, Allyndriel. Don't you think it's time for a visit?" He asked her, his tone deceptively light.

"A visit?" Allyndriel asked, not trusting herself to look directly into his eyes. "Is that all this is, brother."

Goewin smiled, his face deadly and beautiful. "A visit, and a chance to catch up on your life. Mother is very interested to know what you've been up to since you left us. She would like to know what progress has been made."

Allyndriel felt her stomach lurch. "Don't play coy, Goewin, it doesn't suit you." She said angrily. "I know quite well that mother has been watching my every move. She is well aware of everything I have done, and she knows how difficult my task has been."

Goewin nodded. "Yes, a difficult task indeed. And one it seems you are no closer to completing than when you left us all those years ago."

"The Goblin King is stubborn, as you well know. It was not my fault he refused my hand in marriage when father offered it to him, and yet I was punished for it. It is not my fault that he refused to hand the Labyrinth over to Orin, am I to be punished for that as well?" There, her fear had been spoken aloud, there was no turning back now. Goewin raised a questioning eyebrow at use of the High King's name instead of his title. He hoped she would not make the same mistake when speaking to their mother, but he kept his mouth closed on the subject.

Is that what you see this as, Allyndriel?" Goewin said gently, his pale fingers gently caressing her cheek. "These years have not been to punish you, they were to strengthen you, and give you a chance to prove your worth."

Allyndriel's eyes narrowed. "There is nothing I could do to prove myself worthy to mother. You and I both know that." She said.

Goewin's gaze was hard, masking the pity he felt for her. What she said was true, their mother despised her, and he had never understood why. "It is time to go home, Allyndriel." He said finally. "But first, remove the glamour. Mother would see as you truly are."

Allyndriel's eyes were shining, and he knew she was biting back tears. As she fought for composure, the glamour began to fall away, until she stood before him in her true form. Not much different, he thought. The same as before, really, but with darkness where the color had been. A true Fomorian. "You are not the same as they are, sister." He said, as he took her hand. "You should not be ashamed of it. You are Fomorian, Dark Fae. You should be proud of the darkness." His words were meant to comfort her, but he didn't miss the way she cringed as she caught sight of her reflection in the fountain.

* * *

Fanan Dubh, the Black Hill. Allyndriel felt small beneath its cold, hard gaze, and she shuddered at the memory of her childhood within its loveless halls. She had almost forgotten the place, after being away so long. It was almost easier to believe that she had grown up in the ancestral home she now occupied, rather than merely reclaimed it. She had left this place to accomplish her mother's bidding, but she had cast her life here behind her, and hoped never to return to it.

Now, with her brother a few paces ahead of her, she froze in her tracks. Her belly was heavy with dread, and she thought she might vomit. "Come along, Llyn." Her brother's voice was soft, almost pitying, and he had used her childhood name. "Mother will be waiting." Yes, mother would be waiting, that's what terrified her. Reluctantly she lifted her skirts and began following him once more.

They climbed the great onyx staircase, each step bringing back one painful memory after another, until they reached the top and crossed the threshold into the dark and dismal keep. Huge onyx pillars stood at either side of the doorway, like ancient sentinels warning her to flee as fast as she could. She closed her eyes as she passed them, a shuddering intake of breath her only sound.

She felt Goewin's pale hand grasp hers reassuringly, and when she looked into his black eyes she saw pity there. Why would he be kind to her, she wondered. He was mother's pet, he should be gloating now. To see pity in his eyes only strengthened her resolve. She squared her shoulders and snatched her hand away. "Let's get this over with." She hissed, and he inclined his head in acquiescence.

For the first time she took the lead, her head held high, as they glided silently through hallways and room to room, finally reaching the great hall. Taking a deep breath, Allyndriel threw the giant doors open and stepped inside, instantly feeling the gaze of all assembled there bearing down upon her. She steadied herself, making her way before the dais, and bowed at the feet of the dark lady seated upon it. "Mother." She acknowledged.

She was at first met with silence, and she stole a glance upward as her mother regarded her coolly. Her shimmering black hair was longer even than Allyndriel remembered it, winding its way down her body and pooling at her feet. Her pale face seemed almost deathly white in contrast to the darkness around her, and there was no love in the black eyes that met Allyndriel's gaze.

"So," Her mother spoke finally, and her rasping voice seemed to scrape at the inside of Allyndriel's scull. "My daughter has finally returned home. And I see you have come to me with the face of your ancestors, yet you still clothe yourself in the colorful rags of the Lesser Ones. What a pity you have such disdain for the customs of your own people."

Allyndriel looked down, realizing for the first time that she was still wearing the sunshine yellow dress she had put on this morning, and cursed herself for not thinking to change it before she came. She tried to think of something she could say that would turn away her mother's anger on the subject, but could think of nothing, so she kept her mouth shut.

"You have been gone many years, dearest daughter, and have made many plans. Yet you have accomplished nothing. The Cursed One still lives, and he still controls the Labyrinth."

Allyndriel shook her head defensively, "But mother, The Goblin King…" she cringed as she was cut off harshly. A pain shot through her head, as though she had been hit with a blunt object, though no one in the room had lifted a finger.

"Silence!" her mother screamed, and the sound echoed throughout the great stone hall. "I would not hear your feeble excuses, girl. You have failed me terribly! Not only have you not accomplished the simple task you were given, but now the Cursed One will be crowned High King! How could you allow this? Do you not remember the lessons you were taught as a child? Have you forgotten how his ancestors stripped us of our power, our land, forced us to live in exile, until even the memory of our people are but legends to the Lesser Ones? We should be ruling them, Allyndriel, yet we hide from them. He did this to us, with the help of his Labyrinth. How easily you forget."

With these words her mother stood from her throne, taking the few steps down the dais until she stood before her cowering daughter. She caught Allyndriel's chin in her cruel grasp, her fingers digging into flesh. "And now he will rule them in our stead, Allyndriel, and his cursed seed will control not just the Labyrinth but all of this world. They have taken what should have been ours, and you have allowed it to happen. What do you have to say for yourself." She released her grip so that Allyndriel could speak, but held her still in her iron gaze.

Allyndriel's eyes were wild, and she sought words, actions, anything, that could turn that gaze away from her. "I have been watching them mother." She said finally, desperately. "I have a spy inside their very home, and we will find a weakness…"

Her mother sneered derisively. "Oh yes, I know all about your spy, Daughter." She said turning away as though the very sight of Allyndriel made her sick. "A feeble old man who is of as much use to us as a lame horse. He will spy, and he will learn nothing that I do not already know."

"And what do you know, Mother?" Allyndriel asked with a boldness in her voice she did not feel.

Her mother turned her head slowly, regarding her daughter with a sidelong glance. "I know that the Cursed One has taken a human into his bed and made her his Queen." The dark lady sneered. "I know that there will be a coronation ball in one month's time in Chead Cathair, where he will be crowned High King, and where he will present this human as Queen over us all, and proclaim her abominable offspring his heirs. And I know that none of them will survive the night."

Allyndriel's eyes widened. "What? But how will you accomplish this?" she wondered aloud, the dread she felt earlier returning.

Her mother smiled, and Allyndriel's blood ran cold. "I will accomplish nothing." She said sweetly. "My children will."

At this Goewin spoke for the first time. "What do you mean, mother?" he asked, and the Dark Lady smiled genuinely at the sound of his voice.

"Allyndriel will return to our old estate, and resume her intrigues. However you, my son, will travel to the Castle Beyond the Goblin City. There you will befriend the Cursed One and his disgusting little family. They will grow to trust you, even to love you. And on the night of the coronation, you and your sister will slaughter them all, in full view of the court, and there will be no doubt in any of their minds who the true ruler of the Underground should be."

"But that's suicide!" Allyndriel protested. "The guards will certainly kill us where we stand!"

"Then I leave that to you to figure out, daughter." Her mother said. "Do what you must, but if you fail me again, it will be for the last time." With these words her mother spun and climbed the dais, taking her seat upon her throne.

"Come, Llyn." Goewin said, pulling his stricken sister away. "I'll take you home." They left the great hall the way they came, and as the doors shut behind them, Allyndriel collapsed on the floor and cried piteously, but out of relief or fear Goewin did not know.


	22. Homecoming

A/N: Sorry about the LONG wait between chapters. I am a busy girl. Thank you all for sticking with me and for leaving your lovely reviews. Here is a nice long chapter, and the next chapter is nearly finished.

Disclaimer: All common disclaimers apply.

* * *

Jasmine grinned as she pushed her matted hair away from her eyes. The early morning air was cool against her skin, but exertion and adrenaline had caused her to break out into a healthy sweat, and she was panting as she spoke. "Give up, Ryan, you're not gonna win this time." she taunted. 

Ryan gripped the handle of his broadsword all the more tightly at his sister's words, and a smirk lit his determined face. "You haven't won yet, Jas. Don't get cocky." As he said the last word he lunged at her, at the same time sending a bolt of energy in her direction.

Jasmine ducked and rolled out of the way, easily avoiding both attacks. "Is that all you got?" she teased, springing to her feet and resuming her defensive stance. "I was hoping for a challenge this morning."

Ryan tossed his blue and blond hair defiantly. "Oh were you? I thought you just wanted to dance." He lunged again, feigning right before bringing his sword down hard to the left. Jasmine was caught off balance and stumbled backward as she countered the blow. A loud crack announced the demise of her shield. She grinned wickedly as she tossed the ruined armor aside.

"Oooh, you broke Saren's shield. She's not gonna be happy."

They went on this way for quite some time, trading licks both physical and verbal. Neither noticed the lone figure leaned against a nearby sparring dummy, a single crystal thoughtlessly winding its way back and forth between his gloved fingers, as he watched intently with unscrutable eyes. This suited him fine, as it afforded him time to watch the twins in anonymity, a luxury he seldom had. He smiled at his children, at their determination and the progress they had made. Yet his heart was touched with sadness none the less.

He closed his eyes, and in his mind the years flew away and the children before him were but babes, barely able to walk. They had played this way together even then and in all the years since, he knew. Fights, both real and imaginary, but always with an amicable ending. They had practiced on each other, but stood together, back to back, when threatened by some outside force. And all the while they had grown, undiscovered abilities and misunderstood emotions coiling inside them like a cobra ready to strike. They had grown alone, with no one but their frightened and ill equipped mother to guide them, no one to truly watch over them but each other.

It made him proud that they had done so well alone, yet for the the thousandth time he felt his heart break that they had had to. He watched them grow in his mind's eye from babes to children, to adolescents, to the confused teenagers he had first met, to the proud Fae Royalty that stood before him now. He cursed what he had missed, the time he had lost, the fact that he had never held them swaddled or bounced them on his knee, seen their first step or heard their first words. He cursed at how close he had come to losing them forever or worse, never having known of them at all. A single frustrated tear made it's way down his pale cheek and he clenched his hands into a tight fist, the crystal long since forgotten.

_I should have been there!_ His mind screamed, more loudly than he had intended for immediately he felt the calming presence of the Labyrinth enter his mind.

_You were there, old friend, if only in spirit_. The soothing voice whispered into his mind.

_And what good was that to any of us?_ Jareth answered bitterly.

He felt the spirit around him laugh softly. _Why, it kept them safe, of course. And eventually, it led them to find you._

Jareth's jaw clenched as he fought to hold on to his anger in spite of the spirit's words. _I failed them._ He thought, his anger and his pain coloring his words. _I failed them, I failed Sarah, and I failed myself._

_Quite the contrary. _The words were touched with a feeling of urgency that Jareth couldn't ignore._ I will not debate this with you, Jareth, when you already know the truth. What is past is past, you cannot change it. But do not waste anymore time mourning it. Do not cry for lost opportunities, but seize the ones in front of you now, all of them, before they too are lost forever._

Jareth was momentarily stunned, both by the Labyrinth's words and the silliness of his own actions. The Labyrinth was right, of course, as he always seemed to be. _Thank you again, old one_. Jareth thought, wiping away the tears and turning his attention back to his children, the ones in front of him, the ones he could touch.

Jasmine was circling Ryan, crouching low and tossing her rapier back and forth in her hands. Ryan turned in a slow tight circle, waiting for her to attack. He was taken off guard when instead of lunging she stood up strait and closed her eyes, whispering softly under her breath.

Ryan eyed his sister warily. "Jas, what are you up to?" he asked, a touch of apprehension in his voice.

A satisfied smile spread across her face as she opened her eyes, thrusting her palms forward. Ryan was hit by a focused blast of air that knocked him off his feet and onto his back. Before he could react she was on him, rapier cutting the air like lightening before coming to a halt just below his chin. Jasmine crouched over him, her one dark eye sparking like a smoldering coal, her wild dark hair writhing in the wind like a living thing. "Thanks for the dance, little brother." she said darkly. Ryan was struck by how completely terrifying she looked, and was suddenly glad it was only a game.

Jareth, too, saw the ferocity of his daughter and felt his heart swell with pride. She would make a fine Queen one day.

As if sensing her father's thoughts, Jasmine grinned, lifting the mood instantly. She sheathed her rapier and offered her hand, helping Ryan to his feet. Ryan frowned as he stood, wiping the mud from his clothes. "You cheated." he said.

"And she did a magnificent job of it." The twins spun around at the sound of their father's voice. He was still leaning against the post of the sparring dummy, smirking slightly and inspecting his gloved fingers. When they didn't move he looked up, his hands outspread. "Well?" he complained.

At his tacit invitation, Jasmine ran to greet him, laughing as he caught her in his tight embrace and lifted her from her feet like a little girl. As he settled her back to the ground he put his free arm around Ryan, an almost awkward gesture as his son was now as tall as he was.

"When did you get home, Dad?" Ryan asked him. "Jasmine and I have been up since dawn and we didn't see you come in."

"Ah, I flew in last night." He admitted, his tone uncharacteristically sheepish.

"And you didn't let us know you were here?" Jasmine pouted, accepting his outstretched arm as they made their way back to the castle.

"Well, your mother met me at the gate and..."He stopped short as Ryan suddenly covered his ears and clenched his eyes closed. "Are you alright, Son?" he asked, genuine concern coloring his voice.

Jasmine laughed as she playfully elbowed Ryan in the ribs, though she didn't understand what the big deal was. She thought it was sweet that Jareth and Sarah still acted like teenagers together. "I think what he's trying oh so subtly to say is that we understand, please don't go on." she explained.

Ryan nodded in agreement, opening one eye carefully to gauge Jareth's response to this. Only when he was greeted with an amused smirk did he risk lowering his hands and opening the other eye.

"Why did you close your eyes, Ryan?" Jasmine teased. "Did you think he was gonna show you the hickies?"

"Oh, jeez, Jasmine!" Ryan exclaimed, covering his face with his hands.

"And just what, pray tell, is a hicky?" Jareth asked earnestly, and Ryan moaned again.

"Did Uncle Toby come back with you?" Jasmine asked, attempting to change the subject.

"Of course." Jareth answered. "An hour or two behind, though. His horse is fast, but it does not have wings." These words were punctuated with a self-satisfied smirk.

Jasmine nodded thoughtfully. "Well, if he came in last night too, that probably explains why we couldn't find Saren this morning."

"Gods!" Ryan groaned. "Everybody's getting laid but me."

Jareth lifted an eyebrow at his son's outburst. "Son, you've just been handed a kingdom to run. I would not be in such a hurry to take on new responsibilities just yet."

"What responsibility?" Ryan countered. "I just need a girlfriend. In case you haven't noticed, I am related to every female around here that isn't a goblin or currently curled up next to my uncle."

Jareth looked to his ever sensible daughter for aid, but was surprised when she added fuel to the fire. "You're not the only one with problems." she cried. "There' isn't exactly a horde of eligible bachelors around here either."

Jareth blinked. It was a simple motor function, and the only thing he could think to add to the conversation. As his children continued to argue over who was more in need of companionship, a thought finally occurred to him, one which seemed to make perfect sense and need no explanation. "But you're only sixteen."

Ryan and Jasmine once again turned their attention to their father, their faces questioning. "How old was Mom when you met her?" Jasmine asked.

Jareth's face became hard, his eyes narrowing tightly. "Child, I am not some fool mortal that can be guilted into changing his opinions." He warned, raising a single gloved finger to make his point. "My relationship with your mother has nothing to do with you."

"Actually," Ryan began, but Jareth wheeled his gaze towards his son before he could finish.

"Don't say it!" Jareth growled, realizing his mistake immediately but not wishing to have it pointed out to him.

Jasmine had never seen her father upset with them before, and she was beginning to regret her words. "I'm sorry, Dad." She said, placing a tentative hand on his arm. She felt the muscle tense beneath it and wondered why such an innocent conversation had him so flustered. "It was only a joke. You're not mad are you?" she asked, batting her eyes in her best innocent lamb impersonation.

Jareth struggled to maintain the stern face he had assumed, but felt it soften in spite of himself at the look his daughter was giving him. _Damn, I am some fool mortal after all._ Finally losing all will to maintain the facade, he pulled his daughter too him. "No, little one, I'm not angry." He said, debating weather or not to admit the rest. Finally, he let his true feelings spill out. "There is a part of me that would like to believe the two of you are still children, and forget that I've lost so much time." He said, kissing the top of her head. "And sometimes I forget that you weren't raised here, there are still things about you that are completely human."

"Like what?" Ryan asked, sounding almost offended.

"Like worrying about the opposite sex when you're only sixteen." He answered. "Most Fae are in their fifties before the subject comes up. I was well over six hundred before I met someone who truly caught my attention."

Jasmine and Ryan stared numbly at their father for a few long moments, trying get over the shock of what he had just said. Finally Jasmine spoke. "But you're immortal." she countered weakly.

Jareth laughed. "And so are you." he said, a sad smile touching his lips. "You have all the time in the world, my sweet one. You don't have to grow up so fast."

They sat in silence for moment more, before Ryan spoke again. "We'll be seventeen in two weeks!" Jareth couldn't help but laugh at the desperation in his son's voice, and even Jasmine joined in.

"And how is our mother this morning?" Jasmine asked finally. "I've been worried about her."

Instantly Jareth's stern expression returned. "Worried?" He asked. "Why would you be worried?"

Jasmine began walking toward the castle again, her arm linked with her father's. "She just hasn't seemed herself lately. She mopes around the castle or wanders aimlessly in the Labyrinth when you're not here. It's like she has something on her mind and she's trying to work it out."

"Well, I suppose she's still adjusting to the changes in her life." Jareth said, trying to reassure himself as much as his children. He had no idea Sarah had been troubled, and that bothered him. "After all, she has had to endure more change than any of us. Maybe she's still trying to work out her place here."

His words were comforting, but Jasmine did not miss the fact that his brow was still wrinkled with worry. "Do you think that's why she's sick, too?" Ryan asked from behind them, and both father and daughter stopped so quickly he nearly ran into them.

"Sick?" Jasmine asked, spinning around to face his brother. She hated it when he knew things that she didn't. "Who said she was sick?"

Ryan took a step back under the heavy gaze of his father and sister. "Ah, well, Ona, her maid, mentioned it the other day." He told them.

"What exactly did she say, Ryan?" Jasmine asked, exasperation lacing her tone.

"Well, she said mom had been sick every morning for the past couple of weeks, and she won't eat breakfast because she can't stand the smell."

Jareth glanced at his children briefly as his worried expression changed to one of confusion and then…hope? Jasmine would have asked but he unceremoniously disappeared before she got the chance. She grinned broadly and smacked her brother on the arm. "Idiot." She said, still smiling.

"Ow!" Ryan complained, rubbing the offending arm. "What did I do now?"

"Why didn't you tell me about Mom being sick?" She asked.

"I didn't think it was important." He answered her. "She always seems fine when she comes down to dinner. Besides, maybe if you were nicer to the goblins, Ona would have told you herself."

Jasmine ignored the jab as her gaze turned skyward and she picked out the royal bedroom window high above them. She didn't know if her father had fully grasped the significance, or if his reaction was merely one of instinct and worry, but she would not soon forget the look that had crossed his face as he disappeared. She smiled warmly. In a way, she would love to be a fly on the wall of that chamber right about now. Of course, the things she would witness would probably scar her for life. She sighed and slipped her arm through her brother's, allowing him to escort her to breakfast in Jareth's place. Somehow she didn't expect her parents to be joining them.

"What are you smiling about over there?" Ryan asked, the entire situation confusing the hell out of him. "I thought we were supposed to be worrying about Mom now?"

"Oh, I am still worried about Mom, and Dad, and us too." She answered cryptically. "Babies are a lot of work you know."

Jasmine fervently wished she could bottle the look on her brother's face. "Babies?"


	23. It Takes a Mortal to Make a Queen

A/N: As promised, another chapter. I hope you enjoy it, and thanks for reading!

Disclaimer: I don't own the Labyrinth, and alas, I profit not from these tales.

* * *

"Babies?" Ryan wanted to ask what the hell Jasmine meant by that, but was interrupted by a commotion among the Goblin guards at the gate.

"Should we get Dad?" he asked her, his voice tight.

Jasmine shrugged, but her look was tense. "You're the Goblin King." She answered.

"Right." Ryan said, squaring his shoulders. He summoned a crystal and dropped it at his feet, allowing himself a split second to marvel at the wonders of an instant magical shower and shave. He felt a small burst of magic behind him and turned to find his sister cleaned up as well, and adorned in finely tooled black leather battle armor. He raised an eyebrow in her direction.

"It never hurts to be prepared." She said, her fingers clenched to the sword hilt.

Ryan sighed, now feeling woefully underdressed in his usual formal attire. Whatever, at least he knew Jasmine had his back. He made his way toward the commotion in long regal strides, and smirked as the goblin guards began bowing at his approach while still attempting to be menacing.

"What is the meaning of this commotion?" he asked, taking on the commanding tone that had become second nature to him.

"Sire!" One of the guards called out as he made his way through the throng. Jasmine recognized him as Murk, the Captain of the Goblin Army. An uneasy feeling crept up her spine and she fought the urge to physically shake it away. "There is a stranger here, attempting to gain entrance to the kingdom!"

"All this fuss over one stranger?" Ryan asked, walking toward the gates. "Why did you not just call me? Open the gate!" He called over the heads of the guards before him, and while they all milled around a bit, no one actually opened the gates. Ryan raised his eyebrows.

"Forgive us, Sire." Murk said. "But he is one of _them_."

"One of what?" Jasmine asked before Ryan could speak.

The goblins milled around a little more, talking amongst themselves before Murk finally answered. "We don't know." He said definitively.

"Let me get this strait." Ryan said. "There's someone on the other side of the gate who would like to come in, and you don't want to let him in because he's one of _them_, but you don't know what _them_ is?"

Ryan glanced at his sister but she shrugged again. "Goblins." She said unhelpfully, but the uneasy feeling was making its way back. Goblins as a general rule were not afraid of anything but Jareth, Ryan, and an empty beer keg. Why would they be so terrified of one lone rider?

Ryan bent slightly so that his eyes met Murk's. "Captain, do you trust me?"

Murk snapped to attention, his heels clicking together smartly. "Of course, Sire!" he answered.

"Then why don't we let the rider in to explain himself, and I'll decide whether or not he is a threat, hmm?"

"Yes, Sire!" Murk answered, and then turned to the others. "You heard His Majesty, open the gate!"

Jasmine put her hand on Ryan's arm. "Maybe we should listen to them." She said breathlessly, and unexplained fear seized her heart. Ryan glanced at her quizzically, but it was too late, the large gates were already swinging open. Jasmine held her breath, not sure what she expected to see on the other side.

When the gates were fully open, a man stepped through them, not atop his horse as Jasmine expected, but leading it through. She let her breath out in a slow hiss. He was not the fearsome creature she had expected, though she could see how he might have terrified the goblins. He was very tall, two or three inches taller than Ryan and her father, his broad shoulders covered with a thick black cape. In fact, all of his clothing was black, as was the long hair that draped down his back and the horse that followed him loyally as he made his way into the city. As he reached the spot where Jasmine and Ryan were standing, he bowed low before them before bringing himself back to his full towering height, and she realized it had been a gesture of respect to lead the horse rather than ride it and make himself that much taller than the king.

"Good morning, Your Majesty." He said slowly, and the words dripped from his tongue in a deep and heavily accented voice. The accent seemed familiar somehow, and Jasmine struggled to place it, barely aware that Ryan was speaking.

"Good morning, good sir." Ryan said diplomatically. "Though I might have the name of the man who has caused such a stir among my subjects." It was true, goblins from all over the city had gathered to see the new stranger, and each of them carried the same fearful look as the guards.

"My apologies, Sire." The stranger said. "I am Goewin, Prince of Fanan Dubh, a land far to the south. I have been sent by my mother, the Lady Moriana, as an emissary to the new High King."

"I'm afraid my father is indisposed for the moment, Prince Goewin." Ryan informed him. "I am Ryan, Ruler of the Goblin Kingdom. And this is my sister, Princess Jasmine."

Jasmine wasn't listening and didn't realize that she had been introduced. Her mind was racing with thoughts she didn't understand, and the fear that had seized her earlier was flexing its grip. "The Black Hill." she whispered, and as the stranger's eyes snapped upon her she was startled to discover that they too were black as coal, without a hint of white or any other color. She would have sworn that when he first stepped through the gate they had been blue.

"You know of my home, My Lady?" Goewin asked her.

Jasmine pulled herself to her full height, feeling peculiarly as if this moment and its outcome was of vital importance. "I merely translated, good sir." She answered diplomatically. "I regret that I have never heard of the place itself."

The dark stranger smiled sadly. "Alas, most have not." He told her. "But perhaps that is a tale best told over breakfast."

"Of course!" Ryan said, drawing the stranger's attention back to himself. Jasmine let out a breath she did not know she had been holding when the stranger's gaze fell away from her. "My apologies, Prince Goewin, you must be tired and hungry after your long ride. The hospitality of my Kingdom is yours. I shall have chambers prepared for you, and you are more than welcome to join my sister and I breakfast." Even as Ryan spoke, four of the goblin guards sped toward the castle to guarantee a room for the stranger and an extra space at the breakfast table.

"That would be delightful, your majesty." Goewin smiled. "Will your father be joining us?"

Ryan glanced at Jasmine and smirked playfully. "I fear my father will be otherwise engaged for most of the morning." He said. "He is a busy man, after all. But I have no doubt that a meeting can be arranged for this afternoon."

"Then I shall just have to enjoy the company of you and your charming sister until then." Goewin said, and Ryan smiled, pleased that the meeting had gone so well. He turned and took Jasmine's arm, leading her toward the castle. Jasmine, for her part had not been paying much attention to the meeting, and barely noticed as she was being led away. Her mind was racing, and her heart pounding as though she had been running, and it wasn't until she felt the cramp in her hand that she realized how tightly she had been grasping her sword hilt.

Goewin watched the twins through hooded lids as he followed them to the castle. Jasmine may not have noticed her grip on her sword, but it not escaped his attention. The boy king had seemed to accept him readily enough, but the girl was a different story. She didn't know who he was, but something within her regarded him as a threat, that was plain to see. He would have to work especially hard to win her over.

All in all, though, he was pleased with how well things had gone. He would infiltrate this family easily enough, and when they least expected it, he would take revenge for all that the Baalerons had done to his people. He smiled as the door to the castle was held open for him. Such fools, inviting death into their home.

* * *

Sarah leaned against the bathroom wall, the cool porcelain feeling good against her cheek. She silently blessed Ryan. His first 'official' act as King was to have modern bathrooms installed throughout the castle, complete with medicine cabinets and hot and cold running water. Her smile faded as another wave of nausea hit her, and she began to wretch fruitlessly over the toilet. She had already lost all the food in her stomach, there was nothing left, yet the nausea would not subside. At least it was only in the mornings. With the twins it had been all day long for six weeks. She had nearly been hospitalized twice for dehydration.

As this wave passed she closed her eyes, afraid to move for fear of inducing another bout of retching. _You should tell him._

_Oh, not now, Taliesin, _she moaned inwardly_. Can't you see I'm busy? _She had barely completed the thought when her body began to shake, not from the morning sickness, but from force of a vision attempting to break its way into her conscious mind. Sarah moaned again. Of all the times for one of these stupid memories to surface. She sighed, and pressed her back against the bathroom wall. By now she had learned it was easier just to let the memories come than to try to fight them.

_Branwen stared into the mirror, not sure where the strength was coming from that kept her on her feet. So much death, and it was all her fault. She had been weak; she had given way to temptation. She had dared to hope that there could be a future for herself and Finn, and for their child. She watched her own reflection absently stroking her abdomen as her thoughts turned to her child, and she sneered with disgust._

_She had betrayed her own people, she had brought about their slaughter by her own greed. She had no right to live, and neither did the child! She reached for the hilt of her sword, slung thoughtlessly over the bedpost. Pushing away all thought or reason she gave into the grief and guilt and pain. She pulled the sword from its sheath and time seemed to stop. She thought of the life she had dreamed of, she thought of the child that now would never be, and a single tear slid down her cheek. She heard his voice calling out to her, but she thought it was part of the dream. Then the moment was over, and she felt the sting of the blade as it pierced her skin, plunging into her traitorous heart._

_She felt her lifeblood slipping away, and the world began to fade. Instinctively she placed her hand over her belly in a protective gesture. "What have I done." She moaned. Her knees buckled, but she did not fall, as two strong arms were there to catch her._

_She fell into the embrace, struggling to see past the fog that was overtaking her. "No, Branwen." He cried, and as his mismatched gaze met her own she saw the tears welling in his eyes. He reached out to grasp the sword, intent on pulling the wretched thing from her body, but she screamed in pain. She could see the confusion and hurt in his eyes as he searched for a way to save her. "Why, Branwen? Why would you do this?"_

"_I'm sorry." She whispered. "Finn, my love, I'm so sorry." The last of these words was barely audible as what was left of her strength bled away. His face faded from view, and an exquisite warm darkness began to overtake her. _

Sarah gasped as the vision ended, and she began to wretch once more, but she doubted that it was morning sickness alone this time. _She was pregnant!_ She screamed in her mind. _I was pregnant! _The very thought brought another wave and she wretched once more, her hand unconsciously clutching at her abdomen.

_Yes_, Taliesin finally agreed after a moment of silence. _I had forgotten_.

_How could I have done that?_ Sarah moaned as she gave way to tears. _I could never hurt my own child._

_Pain sometimes clouds our judgment, Branwen. It can make us do things we would never do otherwise_.

Sarah stood, her face determined, as she refused to give way to the nausea another second. _No, Taliesin. I refuse to accept that. I would never hurt my own baby to escape my pain._

Taliesin appeared before her, a smile of admiration on his ghostly face. "Of course you wouldn't. Sarah Williams is too strong for that. Don't you see, Branwen, that is why you were brought back. You are stronger now than you ever were before, and wiser too. You had to live as the mortal to truly become the Queen."

"But to what purpose, Taliesin." She wondered, realizing that she was speaking with Branwen's tone but for once not caring. "Why am I here now, in this place, at this time?"

Taliesin moved toward her and touched his ghostly hand to her belly. They both turned as the sound of boot heels clicking urgently against stone made its way up the corridor. He smiled and began to fade away, his voice echoing in her mind. _Why ask why, my Queen, when the answers are all around you?_

Sarah smiled, but it faded quickly as the urge to wretch overtook her once more. She was still kneeling over the toilet when she heard the chamber doors being thrown open, and boot heels behind her.

"Shall I call for the healer, Sarah? I'm sure he can give you something for the morning sickness." Sarah closed her eyes and sighed. Great, not only did he know, he was angry too. This was exactly why she hadn't told him yet.

She stood, wiping her mouth on her sleeve. "I'm sorry, Jareth. I didn't mean to get pregnant. But there is no use getting angry over it, what's done is done."

A look of confusion crossed his face that was so comical she might have laughed had the situation not been as serious. "Angry?" he asked. "You think I'm angry about this?"

It was Sarah's turn to be flustered. "You aren't?" she asked.

"I'm hurt that you hadn't told me yet. The servants say you've been sick for weeks, so you must have known for some time. Why did you hide it from me?"

"The timing is all wrong, Jareth." She answered weakly, beginning to wonder herself what she had been thinking. "There's so much going on right now, you have so much to do. You didn't need something else to worry about."

Sarah's words triggered something inside him, an alien memory that had no place. _Why Branwen? Why would you do this?_ He pushed the thought aside, having no idea what it meant, but it left behind an undeniable feeling of desperation. "Why should I worry, Sarah?" he asked anxiously. "Is something wrong? Is there something wrong with the baby?"

His tone was achingly sincere, and when he protectively covered her belly with his hand Sarah felt a wave a peace wash over her that she had never felt in her life. In her fragile state of mind it was too much, and she began to weep, clinging to his shoulder.

Jareth, of course, completely misunderstood her tears and took them as confirmation that something terrible was happening. "What is it, Sarah? I cannot help you if you don't tell me!" He pulled away from her so that he could study her face, and was confused by her smile.

"Nothing is wrong, Jareth." She said, covering his hand with her own, astonished at the revelation. "For the first time in seventeen years, absolutely nothing is wrong." Though she was perfectly capable of walking, Jareth lifted her into his arms and carried her to the bed, where they held each other in silent contentment.

* * *

Perhaps if they had not chosen that moment to be so blissfully unaware of anything but each other, they might have felt the shift in the atmosphere of the castle. Perhaps they would have discovered the danger that was being led through the front door. 


	24. Look Who's Coming to Breakfast

A/N: I almost didn't write this one. I got so few reviews to the last two it was downright depressing. But a hearty thank you to those who did review, and I hope you enjoy this nice long chapter.

Disclaimer: I still own nothing.

* * *

Jasmine was furious. Though her arm was locked amiably with her brothers, she wanted nothing more than to pull it free and smack it with him. How could he just throw the castle doors open and let this stranger in? Her own instincts were telling her to send him packing, and the goblins' reaction to him had been downright chilling. What was Ryan thinking? She glared at him from the corner of her eye, but if he noticed he paid it no heed. Typical.

As they entered the castle Beloch and the two servants that seemed to follow him everywhere appeared at Ryan's feet. Jasmine observed carefully as Goewin sneered in disapproval at the sight of them. Alone it meant nothing; nearly everyone who came through these doors had the same reaction. Still, it might be worth remembering. Of greater interest still were the goblin's reactions to him. Beloch and the others carried on with their usual groveling at Ryan's feet, but there eyes were intent on Goewin, and they seemed to be clinging to Ryan more than usual. Jasmine filed all of this away for later examination.

"Sire, a room has been prepared for our….guest." Beloch was saying, and the other goblins tittered in agreement, glancing furtively at the dark stranger.

"Excellent." Ryan said, obviously impressed with the speed in which his command had been carried out. "Murk!" he called to the Captain who was still trailing behind him. "Please choose two of your finest officers to be Lord Goewin's…escort…for the duration of his visit with us."

Goewin looked as if about to protest, but Ryan held up his hand and smiled diplomatically. "I intend no offense, Prince Goewin." He told him. "This land has just suffered a devastating war, and we are not yet fully recovered. I would not like to see harm befall a guest because our security is not yet what it should be."

Goewin smiled tightly. Perhaps the boy king was not the fool he had taken him for. "Thank you, my lord, you are most gracious." He answered, with a slight bow of his head, as the blue of his eyes darkened almost imperceptively.

"Not at all." Ryan replied graciously. Though he had not appeared to be paying attention in diplomacy class, or any class at all for that matter, he had in fact learned a great deal. The tutor had once likened diplomatic conversation to dancing, only with a partner who might bite. He was reminded of that now, as he felt the swaying rhythm of the conversation, and its undertone of danger.

Ryan was many things, but he was no fool. His goblins were clearly terrified of the stranger, and Jasmine was more on edge than he had ever seen her. His own internal warning system was also buzzing, but if the stranger did mean them harm he would much prefer him inside the castle where they could keep an eye on him. What was the old saying, keep your friends close and your enemies closer? That's exactly what Ryan intended to do.

"Beloch, please show our guest to his room so that he may freshen up." To Goewin he continued. "When you are ready, Beloch will show you to the dining room." With that he turned on his heel and walked away, dismissing the stranger from his presence and making it clear who the King was around here. Another little trick he'd picked up when no one was looking.

Jasmine stared after him for a moment, before recovering herself. She smiled at Goewin brightly, feeling almost giddy all of a sudden. "Please make yourself at home, highness. I look forward to speaking with you over breakfast." With that she followed Ryan out of the room, hoping her exit had been as regal as his but somehow doubting it.

As she crossed the archway into the next room, she found Ryan leaning against the marble wall inspecting his fingernails. "You doubted me." He said simply.

"I did." Jasmine admitted. "But you were…well…amazing."

Ryan ceased his examination of his fingers and raised one sparkling eyebrow in surprise. "Amazing? Such high praise, I hardly think I'm worthy." He smirked and stood up straight, eyeing her almost menacingly. He walked toward her slowly, his smirk turning to a frown. "Still, to think my own sister thought me a fool." He lamented. "Such a pity."

Jasmine smiled wickedly. She rarely saw this aspect of her brother, and never when they were alone. She knew that to anyone else this side of his personality would be imposing, even frightening. However, he was still her little brother and the fact that he had unleashed his demon on her was amusing. "You've been reading my thoughts, Goblin King." She scolded.

"True." He replied, pacing around her in a tight predatory circle. "But magic was hardly necessary. Your face was screaming them at me as loudly as your mind was."

Despite herself, Jasmine was becoming a bit unnerved by steely gaze of the Goblin King. "I apologize, Sire, if I offended you." She said, feeling silly speaking to her brother that way. She hid the thought carefully.

Ryan smiled. "No apology is necessary, my dearest sister." He told her, " You're thoughts were out of concern for my Kingdom. In the future, however, do try to remember just who's Kingdom this is."

Jasmine swallowed. "Duly noted, Majesty." She told him. "Now, since we're alone is the…formality…truly necessary?"

Ryan seemed to watch her for a moment, before lifting his chin defiantly. "Perhaps it would be unwise to be anything less, at least while our guest is here." He answered, and she realized he was probably right. There was no doubt he commanded more respect when he was like this, even from her, begrudging though it may be. "Besides," he continued, motioning toward the hand that was still hovering near her sword hilt, "It never hurts to be prepared."

Jasmine nodded. "Point taken." She agreed, then grinned wickedly. "But try to tone it down a little when it's just you and me. This guy's not as much fun."

Ryan recoiled in mock offense, but then grinned and bowed with a flourish. "I shall do my utmost, Princess." He told her. He stood and at the same time made a broad sweeping gesture with his right arm. He brought his hand between them and a single crystal spun slowly on the tips of his gloved fingers. "Care to take a shortcut to the dining hall, M'lady?"

"Cut that out." She laughed, and the sound lingered within the marble halls as they both disappeared.

* * *

Goewin had been left in the entrance way with his guards and Beloch. "Right this way, sir." Beloch told him nervously, motioning toward a grand staircase.

"My horse…" Goewin started, but Beloch cut him off.

"Has already been taken care of, my Lord." The little goblin told him. "Now, if you will follow me."

Goewin had no choice but to do so. He marveled at the situation he now found himself in. A moment ago he had been congratulating himself on his successful infiltration of the Goblin Castle, but now he wasn't so sure.

The goblins were obviously terrified of him, and he had no idea why. Neither, apparently, did they, a fact he found disturbing. Still, despite their fear they were treating him as any other guest, in obvious deference to their master.

There was another puzzle. One moment the Goblin King had seemed no more than a foolish boy, the next he was so imposing that even Goewin had been a bit in awe of him. There was obviously much more there than he had first assumed.

Then there was the Princess. In her own quiet way she was just as imposing as her brother. It was obvious that she and her brother were very close, and that she felt a strong need to protect both he and his kingdom. It had been quite telling that she had chosen to greet him in armor rather than more feminine attire, and the hand that had been ever present on the hilt of her sword had been a clear sign that she did not trust him. Her easy way she moved told him she was not stranger to battle gear or to weapons, and he was left with the impression that she would be a formidable opponent if it ever came to that. Still, when the situation had called for it she had been gracious and even charming, a act not easily accomplished when dressed for war.

By far the most disturbing thing about her, however, was the wild sort of beauty she possessed, and the fact that he had noticed it at all. He shook his head in a vain attempt to rid his mind of the vision of her chestnut hair falling softly against black leather, and the sparkle of her strangely mismatched eyes when she smiled. _Get a hold of yourself, Goewin_, his mind scolded. _Mother did not send you here to enjoy the view_.

The little goblin opened the door to his rooms and led him inside. He was astounded. While he would not say his accommodations were luxurious, they were certainly far more comfortable than he would have expected. There was a small sitting room with several comfortable chairs all gathered around a large fireplace, tall glass doors that opened to a balcony that seemed to overlook a garden of some kind, and plush flooring so thick his feet sank into it like grass. The bed was large and covered with thick downy blankets. There was even a small table with a crystal decanter filled with some amber liquid he assumed was alcohol. Every space in the room was taken with something to make a visitor feel welcome and comfortable. It was much more than he would have expected, especially when it was obvious that no one here trusted him.

Everything was a puzzle. Why the hospitality? Why the gracious reception? Why was he invited to join the family for breakfast? Why had he not been tossed in the stable to sleep with his horse? For all he had heard about the Baalerons from his mother, even that bit of hospitality would have been more than he was expecting. These people, at least the ones he had met, were not the wicked ogres he had thought to find here. They were not rude, crass, or even cruel. He had seen genuine concern on their faces for the welfare of their disgusting little subjects. They certainly appeared to have the ability to be fearsome if provoked, but they were not the monsters he had heard of all his life.

Perhaps it was because their mother was human.

Goewin supposed he would have to reserve judgment until he met the father. In any case, whatever they appeared to be, they were still the cursed ones, and they had to pay for their crimes against his family. He would see to that one way or the other. For now there were more immediate needs.

"Excuse me, Belloch is it?" The little goblin had seemed to almost forget his fear, but jumped in shock at the unexpected sound of his voice. "Is there a place nearby where I might wash up?"

The diminutive servant actually smiled as he gestured toward a door that Goewin had assumed led to a closet. "His Majesty had them installed in every bedchamber shortly after his arrival." He was informed. Intrigued, Goewin opened the door and stared in shock. People with bathing ponds attached to each bedchamber could not be all bad.

* * *

Sarah sighed contentedly as she rested her head against Jareth's shoulder. He had fallen asleep, she could tell by the even rhythm of his breathing. Yet even in his sleep his left arm wrapped protectively around her while his right hand rested gently against the almost imperceptible swell of her belly. She smiled and placed her own hand over his, her thumb sketching light circles over the back of his hand. This was everything she had ever wanted, every fantasy she had ever had come to life. She wanted things to stay this way forever, but unease that had hounded her over the last weeks was slowing pushing its way through her euphoria.

She sighed again, this time in resignation, but as she did so the smell of breakfast drifted through her senses. She braced herself, awaiting the relentless nausea that always accompanied such a smell, but no such nausea came. Instead her stomach rumbled and she was keenly aware of being ravenously hungry.

She lifted her head to gaze upon her sleeping husband. "Jareth." She whispered. "Jareth, wake up, I smell bacon."

"I'm sorry, love." Jareth answered sleepily, not bothering to open his eyes. "Tomorrow I will outlaw bacon and you shall never smell it again." He nuzzled his face in her hair and promptly when back to sleep.

Sarah frowned, and she nudged him urgently. "I don't want to smell the bacon, Jareth. I want to eat it!" she told him through gritted teeth as she tried to throw his arm off her. He could be such dead weight when he was sleeping.

Jareth opened one tired eye. "Ah, we have our appetite back, do we?" he asked playfully.

Sarah eyed him evilly and ceased her efforts as it was clear he wasn't about to let go of her just yet. "_I_ have _my_ appetite back." She answered. "I don't recall seeing you heaving over the toilet."

Jareth chuckled, kissing the top of her head. "My apologies, Dearest." He told her. "It was not my intention to make light of your suffering." She scowled again, but in truth she was enjoying the baby banter as much as he was.

Too soon, he sat up, pulling her with him. They were both still fully dressed; it had not been that sort of nap. Jareth sniffed the air experimentally. "I don't smell anything." He said.

Sarah narrowed her eyes. "How can you not smell it?" she asked him. "It's wonderful! Bacon, eggs, sausage, and…coffee!" She clapped her hands together in glee so childlike Jareth had to laugh. "Oh, Jareth I would kill for coffee!" she said excitedly, jumping to her feet.

Jareth followed her and caught her in his arms, laughing as she struggled playfully. "If its coffee my Queen wants, then coffee she shall have." He informed her, lifting her into his arms where she resumed struggling.

"You can't carry me around everywhere, Jareth." She laughed as the doors blew open at his silent command.

"Of course I can." He replied solemnly as he walked through the doors, commanding them closed behind him. "At least until you're too heavy." He added, and nearly dropped her when she bit his shoulder. "Ow!" he cried, rubbing the offended area as she broke free and ran giggling down the hall.

* * *

The dining table was piled high with food, far more than could possibly be eaten at one sitting. Usually there was just enough for everyone to eat their fill with very little left over. With thousands of hungry goblins to feed, waste was unforgivable. However, Jasmine knew that this abundance had been laid out for the benefit of their guest. She also knew that as soon as they all left the dining hall the kitchen staff would enjoy a feast of their own. She smiled at the thought of all the goblins that would be scrambling over this table in an hour or so.

Ryan was seated at the head of the table, body erect and imposing. He had changed to more regal looking attire in shades of black and purple, and the Fae markings of his face and hair had changed colors to match. He had insisted that Jasmine change as well, and her battle armor had been traded for a dark green tunic over black slacks; feminine, but functional. She had refused to give up the sword which still hung at the ready by her side. She was seated at Ryan's right hand, and next to her was the old advisor Valerent. So far, they were the only three that had made it to the table.

"Perhaps we should get started." Valerent suggested. "It appears that we are the only ones coming to breakfast." He added, reaching for a muffin. One stern look from Ryan stopped his hand in midair.

"We will not be dining alone." The Goblin King stated, but did not explain further.

Jasmine glanced at her brother, hiding her smirk before taking pity on her father's startled attendant and giving him a better explanation.

"I don't expect the King and Queen to join us this morning, Valerent." She said. "However, I have never known my Uncle Toby to miss a meal, and as Saren goes where he goes these days, they should both be here shortly." She didn't miss the way Valerent's eyebrows raised at this comment. Whether it was because he truly hadn't noticed what was going on between the Elf Queen and her uncle, or out of shock at the blasé way she had mentioned it, she really did not know or care. She didn't particularly like Valerent, nor did she care about his overdeveloped sensibilities.

"Also," Ryan added just as Toby and Saren entered, hand in hand and smiling, "We have a guest." As Saren entered the room Ryan stood and Valerent begrudgingly followed him. They waited until Toby had helped her to her seat before they found their own again. Toby looked at Jasmine questioningly at the unexpected formality, but Jasmine merely shrugged.

Saren seemed to pick up on Ryan's mood immediately. She had, after all, spent many years with the previous Goblin King. "Did I hear correctly, Sire, that we have a visitor with us this morning?" she asked, laying her napkin at her lap. She had been seated next to Valerent, and across the table from Toby.

"You did indeed, Saren." Ryan replied. "And I'm glad for the chance to ask you about him before his arrival. He is a stranger, dark hair, dark eyes, dark attire. He claims to be called Prince Goewin, and says he is from a land far to the south, where his people were exiled by a previous high king many years ago. Do you know anything of this?"

Saren seemed to consider this. "The only kingdom south of here is the Troll Kingdom, Sire, as you well know. Beyond that is the Blasted Lands, populated by nomads and outcasts and dragons. If anyone was to be exiled, it would be the ideal place to send them. Still, I have never heard this tale before." She finished, with a glance to her right at the advisor, who was lost in thought.

"Valerent," Ryan's stern voice brought him out of his reverie, "Do you have anything to add."

The old man glanced around furtively and fumbled with his hands. "I..uh..no, Sire. I seem to recall an old story, much older than myself, but the details are fuzzy. I'm afraid I will be of no help to you."

Ryan eyed the old man for a long moment, fighting the urge to search his mind for the answers. He hoped there would be nothing there to find, and besides it was too soon for such a drastic step. The Goblin King sighed. "Perhaps my father can shed more light on the subject."

Just then Beloch scrambled into the room. "Lord Goewin," he announced, "Prince of Fanan Dubh!" As the little goblin stepped aside, the guest in question entered the room. Ryan smiled, and indicated the seat to his left, across from Jasmine.

"I'm glad you could join us, Lord Goewin." Ryan smiled. "We were about to give you up for lost." To his surprise, the stranger laughed at this.

"I very nearly was." He answered. "I have never seen such and elaborate washing room. Your servant tells me you have one in each bedchamber? Marvelous." He added without waiting for an answer. Jasmine and Ryan glanced at each other.

"Yes, well, we like them." Ryan supplied, reaching for a plate of sausage. At his cue everyone began reaching for food and before long the dining hall had erupted into a din of clinking plates and silverware and amiable conversation. Even Ryan let down his stern façade long enough to joke with his sister. Goewin watched all of this in amazement. Where he came from, meals were starkly silent and brief. Getting into the spirit he leaned in to join the conversation and he heaped gravy onto his biscuits.

"If I may say so, highness, you look very becoming in green." Both the Princess and her brother looked up at him in shock, and he wondered if he had crossed some boundary. Then Jasmine smiled.

"Thank you, Lord Goewin." She replied. "You are very kind." She hesitated, wondering if she should make some comment on his own clothing, but as he appeared to be wearing the exact same outfit he had arrived in only cleaner, she held her tongue.

He sat back, apparently pleased with her response. Then he directed his gaze to Ryan. "It is a pity your parents could not join us this morning." He told him. "I look forward to meeting them."

Ryan nodded, taking a sip of milk before speaking. "My father returned last night from a rather lengthy trip." He told him. He was going to add diplomatically that he would likely need this morning to rest when the sound of deep male laughter mingled with a feminine squeal drifted to them from the hallway.

"I have you now, vixen." This was unmistakably his father's voice. Soon afterward he heard his mother scream playfully.

"Let go of me, you horrible man." She laughed. The first thing to come into view were her feet, and then the rest of her as she was thrown over Jareth's shoulder.

"Stop struggling, woman, and just let me carry you!" Jareth growled, and she struggled all the harder, pounding at his back and laughing all the while.

He strode into the room where his smile froze at the abashed looks on the faces of everyone there, including the…stranger? He smiled tightly and set Sarah on her feet as politely as he could given the circumstances.

"That was too easy, you rogue." She was saying as she straitened her dress. "What are you plotting now?" Jareth caught her hand as she raised it to playfully hit his shoulder and instead brought it to his lips in a chaste kiss.

"Sarah, darling, it appears we have company." He said, gesturing toward the table.

Ryan sighed, pushing a renegade lock of hair from his eyes. He stood and gestured towards his parents. "Lord Goewin, may I present my father Jareth, High King of the Underground, and my mother, Queen Sarah." He took a moment squench his eyes toward them, a gesture he had learned from his mother as a way to silently chastise someone. "Mother, Father, this is Lord Goewin, Prince of Fanan Dubh."

The stranger walked toward them. "Your majesties, I'm delighted to meet you both." He told them, bowing low before them. Jareth returned the bow, clearing his throat as he did so.

"Lord Goewin." Jareth said. "I apologize if you caught us off guard. We were not told of your arrival." He threw a meaningful glance toward his son, but Ryan had turned his attention back to his eggs. Jareth pulled out Sarah's customary seat at his right hand, leaving one empty chair between her and the stranger, and took his own seat at the far end of the table.

"No apologies necessary, my lord." Goewin said graciously. "I'm glad to see you are not as tired from your trip as was feared."

"Indeed." Jareth answered, giving his son another stern look, but once again, Ryan was ignoring him in favor of food. Jareth sighed. He hadn't noticed the change in Sarah, had not seen the blood draining from her face or the careful way in which she watched the stranger beside her. Her appetite forgotten, she stared at her plate while with the corner of her eye she took in every inch of him, her unease growing. She had seen this man before, or at least men like him. It was tugging at the ancient memories, and nothing hidden there ever turned out to be good. Suddenly the memory she was searching for hit her full force, and she had to stifle an audible gasp.

_Taliesin!_ she hissed in her mind. Taliesin_, where are you?_

_I'm here, my queen. _Her advisor answered, somewhat shocked by the urgency in her voice.

_Taliesin, why is there a Fomorian at my breakfast table?_


	25. Pouting on Silver Wings

A/N: This is just a short chapter. I wrote it at work since we're having an uncharataristically slow night. I'll be working a lot in the coming weeks, so I figured a short update was better than no update at all. Also, since I wrote it at work all I have is wordpad and no spelling or grammer checkes. I have tried to proofread it, but I apologize in advance for anything I missed. Thank you for all the wonderful reviews I recieved, and I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Labyrinth.

* * *

At just over two hundred years old, Goewin was barely more than a youth by underground standards. In a society where people lived to mark millenia, two hundred years was a drop on the bucket. Yet, two centuries was a very long time to be surrounded by hated, and surrounded he had been . Suckled and fed at its teat, so to speak, as his mother was a veritable fountain of hatred. And the wellspring that fed the flow had always been the Baaleron family.

Not that there weren't plenty of others to kindle her ire. She didn't much care for any of the other races that populated the undergroud, and she cursed them for abiding by the exile to the point that the Fomorian race was all but forgotten. She despised the High Throne in general for never having undone the great injustice she felt had befallen their people. She didnt' even seem to care much for the people that surrounded her, truth be told. However, the focal point of her hatred had always been the rulers of the Goblin Kingdom. She blamed them for the war, so long ago now that no one seemed to remember what it was about, that had caused their numbers to dwindle. She blamed them for convincing the the High King to exile her race, sending them to the godforsaken wasteland they now called home. She hated them because they controlled the power of the Labyrinth. And she hated Jareth Baaleron more than any Goblin King that had come before him, because she blamed him for her husband's death.

Goewin's father, Gaul, had not shared his wife's abiding hatred. He had sought a peaceful end to the onesided animosity, for it seemed the Goblin Kingdom had forgotten they even existed, and their blood fued along with them. He had sent out Allyndriel, in the guise of Sidhe princess, as an offering to Jareth. He had offered her hand in marriage in exchange for an alliance between the two families. Jareth had not bothered to explain that he was in love with a mortal girl and that he could not, while she still drew breath, possibly think of loving another. He did not bother to mention that he thought it too cruel to take as a bride a woman he could not love. He had merely refused, politely, but succinctly. Gual had been so heartbroken by his failure that he had simply whithered away and died.

Or so the story went.

This had been a mere sixteen years ago, but it was just the latest in a long line of offenses the Baaleron's had committed against his family. Of course, if Goewin was forced to admit it, it now seemed the only honorable thing he could have done, since it now turned out he had a wife and children already at the time the offer was made. Still, Goewin had spent his lifetime learning these many offenses by rote, and a lifetime of hatred is hard to reason away. His mother's hatred had become his own, and the mere thought of destroying the family that had caused so much pain for his own sent a thrill of dark joy to the pit of his stomach.

Yet in all his years of hearing and hating, he had never actually met his enemy. He wasn't sure what he had expected. Dark and evil creatures, to be sure, full of wicked thoughts and sinister cunning. Beady eyes that plotted and schemed in the darkness, perhaps. He had not been prepared for the strong willed and intriguing young woman who sat accross from him this bright morning, or for the enigmatic and compelling young king to her left.

But the most troubling obstacle to his ongoing hatred was surely the new High King himself. How could this playful man, this cheerful husband and father, be made from the same blackness that had destroyed his people? He was so...so...likable. And Goewin hated him for it. Hated him beacause the very fact of his existance called into question every belief that his life was based on.

Goewin chewed thoughtfully on a piece of bacon, trying to reconcile the vision he had cultivated in his mind with the man at the end of the table who was even now telling a humorous story about a goblin trying to ride a goat. The darkness of his mood was so encompassing that for a moment he let the one faint glamour he had allowed himself slip, and his blue eyes bled to black. He glanced around the table, hoping that no one saw, and his eyes met with those of the human Jareth had taken for a bride. Only there was nothing human about those eyes at all. His blood ran cold, and a fear he could not describe or explain gripped him.

This made no sense, Allyndriel's spy had told her that Jareth's bride was human. Obviously, he was not the only one with a talent for glamor. Even as he watched, unable to turn his gaze, the air around the Queen seemed to cracle with power, and her eyes turned to polished silver, their penetrating gaze as lethal as any blade. Goewin felt sweat beading on his forehead as something inside him seemed to recognize a very old adversary. Still he did not understand the sheer dread he was feeling, and he was dimly aware that the plesant conversation around him had stopped and all eyes were on the Queen.

* * *

_A Fomorian? _Sarah was almost amused by the desperate disbelief in that inward voice. _Sarah, that's impossible. They're all gone, they disappeared millenia ago_.

_Yes, to someplace called Fanan Dubh_. Sarah answered, but it was the commanding tone of the Tuathan Queen that resonated in her words. _Nevertheless, there is one here, now. _As her mental conversation with the bygone advisor continued, she became bolder. A part of her long buried began to burn with righteous indignation. How dare her great enemy wander into her home, her family's home? How dare he sit at the same table, eat the same food? She turned her face defiantly towards him and stared directly into his black eyes, her earlier fear replaced with whitehot anger. She felt the magic welling withn her, felt the human facade slipping away, but she didn't care. Let him see her for what she was, if this was the danger she had so long feared, she would not hide from it.

Afterward she would recognize this as the moment that the wall she had built so carefully to keep Sarah and Branwen separated had fallen and her fractured soul became whole. For now, she merely relished the feeling of being more alive than she had ever been. Her fingers itched and she wanted to strike out at the intruder, but somehting held her back. Fear. She could feel it resonating from him and it tingled blissfully through her. **He** was afraid of **her**. She smiled, a slow predatory smile, and she felt his fear intensify. She was aware that all conversation had stopped, that all eyes were upon her, but she didn't care. She felt Jareth tense beside her, and knew without looking that his face had become steely, and that his own powerful magic was building and at the ready to protect her should she need it.

"Is something wrong, Lord Goewin?" she asked in a voice more icy than any present had ever heard. "You look as though you've seen a ghost."

The Fomorian was obviously struggling between his fear and the lack of a plausible excuse for it. Finally he righted himself, regaining some of his shattered composure. "I, uh, I apologize, My Lady." he answered her. "I had been told that you were human."

At these words she glanced breifly at Ryan, gratified to see the same realization reach his eyes. "What on earth would have made you think my mother was human?" he asked. His words were light and laced with amusement, but his tone commanded a quick answer.

"A rumor." Goewin answered. "Given to us by a traveller. A false rumor, obviously." he continued, flashing a weak smile. Ryan nodded, glancing around the table before returning to his food. There was no need to question him further on the subjet, he knew what he needed to. How many travelers could there be to a place that no one knew existed? It was obvious they had a spy in their midst.

Goewin turned back to the Queen, his curiosity trumping his fear. "If you don't mind me asking, Majesty, what race do you belong to, for I'm sure I've never seen your like before."

Sarah was astounded. _How can he not know what I am? _she asked silently.

_Perhaps so much time has passed that our people have passed even from the memory of those who destroyed us_. Taliesin dutifuly replied.

"Nor are you likely to again." Sarah said in answer to Goewin's question. "I am Tuathan, the Blessed of Danu, and I am the last of my kind."

Sarah was startled to see the last of the fear drain from the boy's eyes at her words, replaced by honest interest. "I have never heard of your people." he said, and she felt the truth in the words. "Where do you come from, why are you the last?"

"Yes, darling." Jareth said stiffly. "Why don't you share that story with us _again_." He fairly ground out the last word, and Sarah cursed herself for a fool. Had she really just divulged a basic fact of her existence to a perfect stranger, an enemy no less, that she had thus far withheld from the rest of her family?

She sighed, forcing herself to relax, and her eyes faded back to green. "Perhaps thats a story best saved for another time." she said, turning to face Jareth. His eyes were narrowed, and she knew he was furious.

"Perhaps you're right." he agreed, and tore into a roll as though it had insulted his mother.

* * *

Breakfast was finished quietly, as everyone there seemed lost in thought, and occasionally Sarah could feel one set of eyes or another glancing furtively her way. She concentrated on her food, eating slowly so as to avoid triggering a return of the nausea. Abrubty Jareth pushed his unfinishe plate away and stood. "If you'll excuse me, I have matters to attend to." he said before stalking out of the room. Sarah's heart lurched with each click of his boot heels, and when they faded she could have sworn her she heard her own heart break.

_What have I done?_ she thought.

_I told you to tell him._ Taliesin replied.

_Shut up_. Eventually she tired of pushing eggs around with a fork and took her own leave of the table, waiting until she was out fo the room and out of sight before hurrying to search for her seething husband.

He wasn't in his office, wasn't in their rooms, wasn't in the garden. She searched the library with no luck, and everywhere else she could think of that he might have gone to hide. In desparation she opened her mind, looking for the gentle bond that tied them together. She knew he would try to block it, and she wasn't disappointed. Still, the bond was to strong to hide completely, and eventually she found him, hovering in tight circles over the Black Forest where the Firey's lived. _Cheater_, she thought. _Two can play at that game_.

She stepped outside and into the air, her transformation effortless. She flew far and fast, her hawk's wings carrying her swiftly to air above the forest where she found Jareth hunting. He swooped and dove after a poor field mouse, taunting it, lifting it into the air before dropping it. Just when it thought it had escaped he would swoop down and catch it again. _Sarah closed in on him._ _That's not fair_, she screached. _He wasn't expecting an owl in midmorning. He wasn't looking for you_.

_What's not fair is having things witheld from me that that I have every right to know_. He answered, as he dropped the poor mouse again. This time Sarah swooped in to pick it up flying into a thicket and dropping it where Jareth couldn't follow. _And now you've stolen my mouse_, he pouted.

_Maybe now you'll stop playing and listen to me_, she told him, lighting herself on a nearby branch. Below two Firey's were playing the strangest game of croquet she had ever seen. Jareth lit next to her, preening his feathers arrogantly. _I've always been listening, Sarah. You just seem to have an aversion to talking._

_I'll make no excuses_, she told him. _I have no idea why I havn't told you this, except that I was having enough trouble dealing with it myself._

_Did it ever occur to you that perhaps I could help you?_ he asked her, clearly hurt.

_Actually, Taliesin said exactly that_.

There was silence for a moment as Jareth stared at her with huge round eyes. _Who the hell is Taliesin?_ he finally screached.

Sarah fluffed her wings in surprise at his outburst. _We really do have a lot to talk about_, she sighed. _But not like this_. She raised up and flew off the branch, as Jareth followed her, and they made their way to the sanctuary at the center of the Labyrinth. She transformed herself, landing gently on the ground, as Jareth landed behind her, his silvery golden wings melding seamlessly into his silvery golden hair. She took his hand and he allowed it, thought the pout was still firmly planted on his face. She couldn't resist kissing his childish lips before leading him to a shady spot under a large oak tree. There they sat face to face, their hands linked together, as the Sarah finally told him everything. And as Sarah's burden grew lighter with the telling, Jareth's, as she had feared, became just a little heavier.


	26. The Curse

A/N: Another short chapter, but at least it's a chapter. I'm working so much right now I can't squeeze much more than this out at a time. I hope you enjoy it. Thank you to all the reviewers. You know how much you mean to me, and you keep me inspired. A special shout out to Lady Saffron of the Daggers, who gave me the ballroom dancing idea and permission to use it. Thank you!

Disclaimer: I don't own any rights to the movie or the characters, except the ones of my own creation. You know who you are.

* * *

Jareth sat still, listening intently as Sarah told her story. To say he was dismayed by parts of it would be an understatement of epic proportions. Still, he bit his tongue when the urge to interrupt came over him, and allowed her to speak. It wasn't so much that he was merely surprised by situation as it unfolded. After all, his life had been one surprise after another since Sarah had fallen into it. What bothered him most was the neatness of it, the way it all seemed to fit, as though every bit of it was meant to be. Jareth liked to think of himself as being in charge of his own destiny. What Sarah was telling him now gave the lie to that concept, and he didn't like it one bit.

He chewed thoughtfully on his cheek, hiding his feelings as best he could, as Sarah finished. When she was done she took a deep breath and waited. He knew she was waiting for his response, but there seemed to be no words appropriate to what he was feeling. Why could nothing just be simple? He supposed he should be grateful, as apparently it was only Sarah's status as some reincarnated mythical queen that had given the Labyrinth – no, Jareth mentally corrected himself, he has a name now – Taliesin, the ability to save her. He sighed, and pulled Sarah into his embrace.

Sarah, becoming increasingly impatient, finally asked the question she thought implicit. "So what are you thinking?"

Jareth tightened his embrace and laid his cheek to the top of her head. "I'm thinking that if it's a girl, we should call her Isabelle." He said, and scowled in surprise at his own answer.

Sarah pulled away and looked up at him, her face worried. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"I'm fine." Jareth said, and smiled reassuringly for good measure.

Sarah, not surprisingly, remained skeptical. "Jareth, I've just explained the origin of your Kingdom! Not to mention that one of the enemies of my people, your people, Jareth, is wandering the halls of your castle as we speak. How can you be thinking of baby names at a time like this?"

Jareth looked into her eyes, her frustration causing silver to swirl among the green, and felt an utterly ridiculous sense of tranquility wash over him. "If you don't like Isabelle we can think of something else, but I think it's only fair I get to name this one."

Sarah growled, and Jareth was rewarded with a bright flash as her eyes went completely sliver. To Sarah's dismay, he laughed delightedly. "Jareth, for heaven's sake! There are more important things to worry about right now!" The energy around her was sparking as her frustration grew, and Jareth took pity on her.

Smoothing her hair from her face he spoke gently. "We've a very clever son, you and I." he began cryptically, and Sarah opened her mouth to argue again, but Jareth put a finger over her lips. "Perhaps you were too preoccupied to notice the guards at breakfast, but they were there, flanking our guest. Ryan has graciously provided an escort for him, ensuring that he will make no movements here that are unobserved. If he is a spy, we will learn as much about him as he will about us, and perhaps that's a good thing. I also find it heartening that although his people were enemies to your race, he himself has never heard of the Tuatha de Danann. If he was sent here to spy, he was sent blindly. I don't think he's as much of a threat as you fear, and if he is, we'll know it before he can cause any harm."

Sarah seemed to consider this before nodding. "You're right, he didn't know. I could feel the truth in him. Still, what about everything else? What about the uneasy feelings I've been having, and the warning that history may repeat itself?"

"We'll deal with those things when they come. Until then, there is no sense worrying over them." He stood, pulling Sarah to her feet behind him. She was looking at him expectantly, a trace of worry still in her eyes, so he bent and kissed her. It was gentle and passionate and when he pulled away her eyes had faded back to green and her expression was peaceful. He brushed his fingertips lightly over her belly. "Right now, my beautiful Sarah, there is nothing more important than you, and I, and this."

She seemed at peace with his words, and that was as it should be. It was his job to protect her, both from harm and from her own fear, and he would do so no matter what the cost. Above all else, he wouldn't let her know that he was more terrified than he had ever been in his life.

* * *

Ryan stared at the doorway long after his parents' abrupt disappearance, which had come far too soon after their even more abrupt appearance. His forkful of eggs hovered in the air expectantly as he tried to make sense of what had just occurred. It wasn't so much that he was surprised by his mother's outburst; he had reached the point where nothing his parents did surprised him anymore. He only questioned her timing. Why make such an important confession to a stranger, and one she obviously disliked?

This brought his thoughts to Goewin, and he turned his eyes toward his guest. Fork forgotten and discarded, he watched the stranger carefully for any signs of duplicity. If anything, the dark haired man seemed more confused than Ryan. He shuffled his food around his plate thoughtfully, and Ryan could see that he was nervously working at his bottom lip with his teeth. Somehow this made the Goblin King breath a little easier. While it was true that Ryan had very little experience with political intrigue, in his opinion people with such benign nervous ticks couldn't represent too much of a threat. Still, he wasn't about to let his guard down around the stranger, literally or figuratively.

He picked up his fork again and shoveled in the eggs, wincing a little as he realized they had gone cold. Putting on his game face, he forced himself to continue as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened. The rest of the occupants of the table caught on immediately and the table chatter began again, everyone speaking at once except for Goewin, who was still staring at his plate.

All eyes turned toward the dark man as he cleared his throat, a cord of apprehension running through them. What would they say if he asked about Sarah? He knew as much as any of them. "Quite the pair, aren't they?" He said finally, and though the collective sigh of relief was not audible, it was certainly palpable.

"That's the understatement of the year." Toby answered automatically, then yelped as the Elvin Queen kicked him under the table. He glared at her. "What?" he asked through clenched teeth.

Goewin ignored the display and continued. "Are they always so….so…."

"Strange?" Valerent supplied helpfully, and shivered a little as the twins glared menacingly in his direction.

"I was going to say passionate." Goewin finished.

Toby nodded his curly head enthusiastically as he dipped his biscuit in gravy. "Oh ye." He said, pausing momentarily to chew. "They're always running out of rooms like that. We find its best not to think about it." These words were punctuated by an audible thump and another yelp. Toby glared at his lover. "Why do you keep doing that?" he asked, and Saren rolled her eyes.

The twins glanced at each other and smiled. Whether he had done so intentionally or not, their uncle's words had successfully diffused what could have been at the very least a troublesome situation.

"Have you thought more about what you would like to do for your birthday?" Saren asked, deciding Toby was a lost cause.

Jasmine shrugged. "It's just seventeen." She answered. "Not really a big deal."

"You're only seventeen?" Goewin asked, and his interest seemed disconcertingly real.

"Well…yes." Jasmine answered, not sure why she was flustered, but flustered just the same. "How old did you think we were?"

"I'm sorry." Goewin said, casting his eyes downward. "I didn't mean to offend. You just seem much older." He looked back up at Jasmine and smiled, and to her everlasting dismay she blushed.

Ryan's eyes narrowed in displeasure. "Yes, well, we were raised Above. It tends to make you older than your years." He said tightly.

"Perhaps." Goewin said, not missing the warning tone in the young king's voice, but for the moment choosing to ignore it. "Still, it's your birthday, you should have a ball."

"Well, I'm sure we will find something fun to do." Jasmine said, wondering how she had allowed herself to be drawn into this conversation.

"I think he means a Ball, Jasmine." Saren clarified. "A dance. And it's not a bad idea."

Jasmine shook her head heatedly at this. "Oh, no. No dance, thank you all the same."

Ryan grinned wickedly. "Oh come on Jas." He said. "It would be fun."

Jasmine gritted her teeth in Ryan's direction. "For you maybe." She spat, and Ryan laughed.

Goewin couldn't help but smile at the exchange. "You don't like to dance?" he asked the Princess, and flinched as she turned her glare in his direction.

"She can't dance." Ryan answered for her. "You see, my sister has two left feet."

Goewin's brow furrowed at this remark, and though he admirably resisted the urge to look under the table, his confusion was plain.

Toby chuckled. "Relax, it's just an expression." He told him. "She doesn't really have two left feet."

"I don't think it's funny." Jasmine said, and moved to leave the table. To her shock, Goewin grabbed her wrist.

"Wait." He told her, suppressing the tingle that spread across his shoulders as her mismatched gaze met his. "I could teach you to dance."

"No thank you." She said through clenched teeth, but she lowered herself to her seat once more. "I don't dance."

"But you are the daughter of the High King. Sooner or later you will have to dance, and with much more important people than me. Shouldn't you learn now?" Jasmine cursed under her breath as she was forced to see the logic. Obviously her father had overlooked one important skill when he assembled his horde of tutors.

"I suppose." She conceded, and resisted the urge to knock the grin of satisfaction off the smug bastard's face.

"Then its settled." He said, oblivious to the mortal danger he was in. "We'll begin the lessons tomorrow."

"Now wait a minute.." Ryan began, but was cut off by a searing pain that was suddenly piercing his skull. He winced, and brought a clenched fist to his forehead.

Jasmine was on her feet instantly. "Ryan, are you alright?" she asked, but her words were hollow and his ears were filled with the sound of rushing blood. He wasn't alright, and the timing was terrible. He had felt this only once before, and his father had promised him that it would get easier with time, as his body adjusted to the sudden pull of the magic. This might be easier than last, but only because last time he had thought he was going to die, and this time he only wanted to. He forced himself not to moan, but he had to cover his face with his arms to hide the tears that were being forced from his eyes.

"Is it the curse?" Saren asked, and all he could do was nod tightly. The pain was beginning to recede a little, but only just.

"The curse?" Goewin asked, his heart racing. He was sure this was information worth knowing.

"The Goblin King's curse." She told him as she stood and dipped a linen napkin into a pitcher of ice water. Placing it at the base of Ryan's neck she continued. "When a human above…" she began, but Ryan reached up and grabbed her hand, silencing her instantly. His eyes were red with pain but his meaning was clear, and she cursed herself for having to be reminded by her pupil that it was best not to tell the stranger everything.

"When a human what?" Goewin asked, but Jasmine shook her head.

"It doesn't matter." She told him. "We have to prepare for the challenge." She looked around. "Murk!" She called, and almost instantly the Captain appeared. "Has a detachment been sent to fetch the child?"

"Yes ma'am." Murk answered. "And the guard around the gate has been doubled."

"What child?" Goewin asked, frustrated at the lack of information.

At the head of the table, Ryan stood, the pain having finally receded to a manageable level. His face was solemn and not a little sad. A careless wave of his hand changed his attire to the formal black a burgundy his father had insisted were traditional for these encounters. With a resigned tilt of his head his only farewell, he stepped to the nearest window and transmuted effortlessly to owl form.

"How did he do that?" Goewin asked. "What's going on?" From outside the room he could hear the sound of a baby crying, and he began walking toward the door. His goblin guards stepped in his way and Jasmine put her hand on his arm not unsympathetically.

"I'm sorry, Goewin, but until the challenge is over or forfeited I'll have to ask you to stay in your room. For your own protection, of course." She added, but clearly as an afterthought. She didn't dance, and diplomacy was not really her thing either. Nodding towards the guards they began to lead their "guest" down the hall and towards the stairs, and Jasmine made her way to the throne room to see to the new arrival, hoping for the sake of timing that the challenger would forfeit, and hoping equally for the sake of the child that they would not. Not a pretty business, this curse.


	27. Washed Away

Ryan followed the magic's beacon through the passage between the worlds and into the realm he once called home. He had not been here since the last time a child was wished away, and that had been months ago. He had expected to feel a sense of homecoming as he had last time, but was surprised to find that was not the case. Instead, he felt uneasy, and his skin crawled with an anxiety he could not put a name to. He ruffled his feathers as if blocking out the cold and flew higher into the clouds.

The cool night air felt good against his wings, and he tried to concentrate on the wonder that was flying, but he couldn't seem to put his mind at ease. It was more than just the unpleasant task at hand, for although this was only his second experience with the family curse, he had already learned to despise it. No, there was something else here, a feeling of wrongness that permeated the atmosphere.

The beacon began to draw him downward, and he followed it with a heavy heart. The air was warmer below the clouds, uncomfortably so, and he was startled to see nothing but blackness beneath him. Blackness and an eerie silence broken only occasionally by gunshots or screams. Something was very wrong in this place. As he drew closer landmarks became visible through the inky darkness. He could barely make out a domed structure looming out of the darkness below, and he realized suddenly where he was. Toby had brought him here last year for the Superbowl, and he had fallen in love with the place.

This was New Orleans.

But that was impossible, New Orleans was a bustling city with over a half million people. There should be lights everywhere. And even from so high up he should be able to hear the sounds of jazz, the lazy moans of the riverboats, and the shrill of the calliope on the Delta Queen. He swept higher, his sharp eyes taking in miles of the land below him, but as far as he could see in any direction there was nothing but darkness and silence. His feathers bristled, and he swooped lower.

As he made his decent the clouds above parted letting the moon shine through to the earth below, illuminating the city just as a hot breeze brought the smell to him. Ryan felt his heart stand still. Below him, where there should be houses and streets and cars and people, was an enormous lake of foul smelling slop. It was as thought the Bog of Eternal Stench had somehow passed between the worlds and taken up residence in the Big Easy.

He flew lower, following the beacon, and was appalled to see rooftops rising out of the stagnant water below. Here and there his sharpened senses caught movement on the rooftops; there were people trapped there. Most horrifying of all were the bodies, hundreds of bloated and stinking corpses floating among the filth. Most were animals, but many, far too many, were people. The occasional tiny body of a child stood out among the rest, and Ryan averted his gaze from the horror, focusing on the beacon and the wisher.

Finally he found her, what was left of her. Ryan bypassed the traditional Goblin King's entrance; the lightning and thunder would seem almost comical amidst this destruction. Besides, this was not so much an entrance as a landing. He transmuted again, coming to rest before the pitiful form of a young black woman, lifeless and covered in blood. She was being held limply in the arms of a man whom Ryan could tell had seen too much. His eyes were empty, as though his soul had already left him.

"She tole me you'd come." the young man said, his eyes staring blankly into space. "I said you wasn't real, but she swore you was. She said her mama tole her the right words. They was the last thing she ever said."

Ryan set aside all worry about the curse and the challenge; how petty that all seemed right now. He knelt down beside the young man, placing his gloved fingers to the forehead of the woman in his arms. He could feel a tiny thread of life still in her, barely there but fighting. "She needs a doctor." Ryan said gently. "She'll die if we don't get her to a hospital."

The young man smirked humorlessly, and Ryan realized how impotent his words had been even before the other man spoke. "Where am I sposed to take her?" he said. "Doan you think I'da took her there before if we'd had somewhere to go? 'Sides, its too late. It was always too late for us."

Even as the words were spoken Ryan felt the tiny spark of life beneath his fingers fade, and he said a silent prayer for the young woman and the man she left behind. "What happened here?" he asked finally, and for the first time the young man looked at him. His eyes would haunt Ryan for the rest of his life.

"Everything happened here. " The young man said. "That hurricane tried to blow us all away, and when it couldn't get us, the levee broke and tried to wash us away. We been on this roof in the hot sun, no food, no water, for three days now. My boy..." The young man's voice broke, and tears sprang to his already bloodshot eyes. "My boy Terrance went off'n the roof yestidy. He was just thirsty, and I was seein to Tracy, she was already sick wit the heat and I wasn't watchin him close enough and he just...he just..." The young man broke into sobs as the horrors of the past few days caught up with him. Ryan put an arm around him, and whispered that he didn't need to speak, but the young man was determined. "He was only three!" he sobbed. "It ain't fair!"

Ryan had to agree; it wasn't fair. It wasn't fair and it wasn't right. These people had been left to die in the hot sun. Wasn't the government supposed to protect them from things like this? There were agencies, committees, humanitarian groups whose sole purpose was to prevent the kind of atrocities this man had suffered. Where were they now? As the man's sobbing died down, he strained to hear into the distance, and could make out the wailing of similar sufferers in every direction. He clenched his fists in anger.

Ryan stood and held his hand out toward the young man before him. The young man stood, but Ryan was dismayed to see the lifelessness returning to his eyes.

"Let me take you somewhere safe." he told him, but the young man shook his head.

"You got my little one safe?" he asked.

Ryan nodded, and produced a crystal. The mists inside swirled away and an image of his castle appeared inside. "He is there, in my home." he told the young man. "And he is well looked after."

"His name is Marcel." the young man said. "That was my daddy's name. Keep him safe an tell him his mama and daddy loved him very much." Perhaps Ryan should have recognized the finality of the words and been prepared for what happened next, but he was distracted by his own sorrow. To his horror, the young man stepped backwards off the roof of the house and into the murky water below. Ryan ran to the edge and peered over the side, but even with all the magical illumination he could conjure there was no sign of the grieving husband and father. He had gone to the water, presumably to join his son.

Ryan stood on the rooftop watching the sun come up over the scene of devastation. His eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched in anger. It was over, the challenge was obviously forfeited. He should go home and see to the babe, but he couldn't bring himself to leave. As the sky grew brighter he could make out the shapes of hundreds of people far into the horizon, greeting yet another day in the sun with little hope of rescue. He couldn't leave them this way. Jareth had warned him that his magic would be weaker here, and overuse might leave him trapped. Right now, Ryan could care less.

* * *

Goewin made it as far as the top landing of the stairs before he stopped, refusing to take another step, squaring his jaw determinedly. He may be a spy, but as far as they were concerned he was a guest and he refused to be herded into his room like an animal. The guards continued to try to heard him up the stairs, but he held firm, listening intently to the stir going on beneath him. 

Jasmine had left down a long hallway, to a part of the castle that he had not yet seen, but he could hear her voice faintly with his heightened senses, and she seemed to be trying to calm the servants. He couldn't make out what she was saying, but by the tone of voice he could tell something was very wrong. All thoughts of information gathering were swept aside as he found himself urgently wanting to help. He sighed at his own weakness, and renewed his efforts to push past the guards.

They crossed their spears in front of him menacingly, and he growled in frustration. "Your mistress is in trouble." He said finally. "Can't you hear her? I want to help."

Still the guards held firm, and he searched frantically for a way to distract them. Just then Jasmine's cry could be heard clearly. "Oh Gods, I think he's dying!" Goewin wasted no more time, risking the pointed ends of the spears as he forced himself determinedly passed the startled guards. They seemed to be torn between their desire to do their duty and their hope that their ward could help with whatever was wrong. And even they could tell that something was very wrong. As Goewin ran away from them down the stairs they looked at each other and shrugged, before following his mad dash down the hallway.

Goewin followed the sounds of the commotion, letting them lead him through what was evidently the throne room and into what appeared to be a nursery adjacent to it. He pushed aside his curiosity over why such a think would be necessary as he found the room bustling with activity. He stood in the doorway, open mouthed, and watched as Saren and Jasmine worked busily over something he could not yet see. Tiny servants were running back and forth, gathering supplies, and Toby paced the floor nervously, chewing on the knuckle of his thumb. Suddenly he looked up, catching sight of Goewin.

"What are you doing here?" he demanded. "Jasmine specifically told you to go to your room!"

"I heard the commotion and thought I could help." Goewin said honestly.

Jasmine looked up at him from whatever she was doing, and then glanced at the others briefly. "Fine." She said, walking towards him and pulling a dagger out of its sheath. He was startled to see her hands were bloody, and wondered briefly if he should be terrified. She stepped close to him, dagger raised, and grasped one of the cords that laced his tunic together. Pulling it taut she sliced several inches from it neatly. Goewin scowled at the ruin of a perfectly good tunic, but was otherwise relieved.

He watched the princess with great interest as she walked back towards whatever what holding everyone's attention. He noticed both Toby and Saren eyeing the dagger warily. "He's not moving." Toby said gravely, and Jasmine nodded tightly.

The Elf Queen was beginning to pale considerably, and Goewin worried that she might faint. "Keep that thing higher than the child!" Jasmine snapped, not looking up as she severed the cord from Goewin's shirt into two equal lengths. Saren jumped and for the first time Goewin realized she held a bloody bowl in her arms. Toby stepped in and took it from her tiring arms, and she took her opportunity to turn her face away.

Right. It was time to see for himself what was going on. Goewin stepped fully into the room and pushed toward the center, instantly feeling as though the wind had been knocked out of him. At the center of the commotion was a baby, tinier than any he had ever seen and devoid of all signs of movement or life save an occasional weak mewling sound. A quick assessment of the situation told him that the object in the bowl was the afterbirth, still attached to the child by an umbilical cord that was pulsating weakly.

Jasmine was fumbling with the two pieces of string she had taken from him, trying to tie them around the cord. "You have to cut it." He said weakly, and she sparked him a sidelong glance before continuing her work.

"You don't say." She spat, finishing up one tie.

"Tie the other one closer." He told her, and she growled at him.

"I know what I'm doing!" she said, but her hands were shaking. He reached out and took the cord from her.

"Like this." He said, and quickly made a tight loop as close to the baby's body as he could get. Once the second tie was bound, he held the cord out. "Cut in the middle." He told her, and she lifted the dagger. Taking a deep breath to calm her shaking hands she made a clean cut at the center of the ties.

As soon as the cut was made Goewin lifted the all but lifeless child from the cot and into his arms. "We need warm water." he said, but Jasmine was a step ahead of him, leading him to a tub that was already filled. He knelt down with the babe in his arms, lowering it into the water. Jasmine knelt at the other side of the tub, and began scrubbing the child gently but vigorously with a towel.

"What are you doing?" Toby asked. "Should we be worried about bathing him right now? He's barely breathing!"

"It's not about bathing him." Goewin said, "Though he is still covered in afterbirth."

"He's still breathing." Jasmine continued. "Hopefully the warm water and the scrubbing will stimulate him to try a little harder." As if in response to the words, the baby began to cry in earnest, his tiny lips quivering in outrage at his rough treatment.

A triumphant cheer went up through the room at the sound of the baby's cry. Jasmine wasted no time. Gathering a thick blanket she whispered a few words over it and was gratified as it warmed considerably. As Goewin stood, she wrapped the blanket around the child in his arms, swaddling it tightly. She smiled down at the little bundle in her arms.

"He'll need to eat soon" Goewin pointed out. "I don't suppose you have a wet nurse?" Jasmine glanced at Saren and she smiled.

"We have better." The Elf Queen answered. "One of the enchantments put on the place millennia ago by another Goblin King." One of the servants ran quickly out of the room, returning a few seconds later with a warm bottle full of creamy liquid. Handing it to Jasmine she offered it to the baby, and he sucked greedily from the bottle, pausing occasionally to sigh contentedly, before hungrily going for more. Jasmine smiled down at the little one, prouder of herself than she had ever been, before remembering she had not saved him alone.

She looked up at the Goewin, startled to see he was staring at her and not the baby. "Thank you for your help." She said, determined not to blush as she felt his dark eyes watching her. "I'm glad you disobeyed my direct order." She added, then her brow furrowed as she pondered a question that had been puzzling her. "How did you know what to do?"

"I've delivered many foals." Goewin answered. "There's not so much difference between baby horses and baby humans." He smiled down at the baby, who had finished eating and was now sleeping happily, his tiny fingers curling and uncurling in his sleep. "How did you know what to do?" He asked suddenly, looking back up at her.

"Ye, Jas." Toby said. "You've never delivered so much as a puppy ."

Jasmine smirked. "Thank the gods for health class."

* * *

Jareth and Sarah were walking back to the castle, ambling slowly and enjoying how lovely the Labyrinth was when you weren't racing the clock and knew where you were going. Jareth had felt the wish, and he had also felt Ryan pass between the realms to answer it. It had occurred to him that perhaps they should hurry back to the castle, but in the end he had decided against it. 

He had to keep reminding himself that he wasn't' the Goblin King anymore. He had taught Ryan well, and the goblins knew quite well how to care for a babe. He wasn't needed, not for this, and he planned to make the most of it.

Still, when an hour had gone by and he hadn't felt Ryan return, he began to get nervous. He tried to hide his concern, but Sarah was far too perceptive. "What's wrong, Jareth."

"I think we need to get back to the castle." He told her. "Now."

* * *

"I suppose you want to know what all of this is about." Jasmine said, and exasperated sigh heavy in her voice. One of the servants had offered to take the babe, but she had declined, preferring to keep an eye on the sleeping bundle. They were in the throne room now, sitting in the window sill where her father had kept watch over her mother so many years before. 

"Not if you don't want to tell me." He lied, doing his best to look disinterested.

Jasmine wasn't fooled, and was weighing weather or not to tell him anyway, when Jareth and Sarah appeared in the room. Jareth's sharp eyes assessed the situation quickly; to say he looked displeased would be an understatement. Weather it was Goewin's presence or his close proximity to her that angered him she wasn't sure, but she was determined not to play into it. Instead, she went on the offensive.

"There you are." She said. "We could have used your help a while ago." Jareth drew up short at his accusatory tone in his daughter's voice, but Sarah intervened, but Sarah intervened before harsh words could be spoken.

Ignoring her own displeasure at seeing the Fomorian sitting so closely to her daughter, she reached for the baby in Jasmine's arms. "Oh Jareth, he's so small!" She cried. "He looks like a newborn."

"He was still attached to the placenta when he arrived." Jasmine affirmed. "And barely alive."

Jareth placed a hand over the child and closed his eyes. After a moment he opened them again and met Jasmine's gaze. "You're right." He told her. "He was close to death, though he seems strong enough now."

"And only Jasmine and Goewin to thank for it, I'm afraid." Saren said as she entered the room. "Toby and I were useless. If not for them, the child would have died."

Jareth returned his gaze to his daughter and the young man by her side, regarding them both carefully. "Then we thank you for your assistance, Sir Goewin." He said, not unkindly. "However, if you'll excuse us we have family matters to discuss."

Goewin bowed respectfully. "Of course, Majesty. I'm pleased to have been of service." He turned to Jasmine and bowed once more. "My lady." He said softly, and turned on his heel to stride from the room. "Come on, boys." He said to the guards who had been waiting for him just outside the door, not sparing them a glance as he walked by. "Show me how to get back to my room."

Once he was gone, Jareth turned back to Jasmine. "We will discuss _that_ later." He told her, raising a warning finger when she opened her mouth to complain. "Ryan is not back yet." He observed.

Jasmine stared for a moment, unable to switch gears as quickly as her father had. "No. I'm a little worried, actually."

"As am I." Jareth agreed. "I can only remember a handful of times a child was wished to me in this condition, and what I found Above was…unsettling."

Sarah tried to think of what would motivate someone to wish away their newborn baby. The possibilities were endless, ranging from frightened unwed teenager (something she knew far too much about) to civil war. She paled as some of the more unpleasant scenarios played out in her mind. "You don't think he's hurt do you?" she asked.

Jareth put his arm around his wife, allowing the tiny baby in her arms to wrap it's fingers around his own. "I doubt he's hurt, but he should have been back by now." He answered. "If he doesn't come back soon I'll have to go and find him."

"Can't you follow the beacon to the wisher?" Saren asked. "Find the wisher and you'll likely find Ryan."

"I could." Jareth agreed. "If the beacon was still there. Unfortunately it has been severed."

"What does that mean?" Toby asked, though by the look on Saren's face and the way she was clutching his hand he feared he already knew.

"It means she's dead."


	28. The Letter

A/N: A short chapter, but a chapter all the same. I apologize for the long delay. Work and life take their toll. I'd like to give a hearty thank you to all the readers who have stuck with me throughout this story, and to everyone who has reviewed and encouraged me to continue. Thank you so much. I apologize in advance for any erros, I wrote this at work and have no spellchecker here.

Goewin stared at the blank piece of paper at the desk before him. He had been trying to write this letter for hours, and was no closer to begining than when he started. He sighed, running a pale hand through his overly black hair. Only a week had passed since his arrival here, and while he knew his mother would be expecting some word of progress, he found it increasingly difficult to reconcile his mission with the reality he had found himself in. These people were not monsters, and with each day that passed he wondered more and more if they deserved the betrayal he was planning for them. With a grimace that bore a more than passing resemblance to pain, he dipped his quill in ink once more and began to write.

_Dearest Mother,_

_Greetings, My lady, I hope this missive finds you well. It has been a week since I arrived here at the Castle Beyond the Goblin City, and I am sure that you are eagerly awaiting the news I bear. _

_My arrival here was unceremonious at best. I was greeted rather cooly by the curent Goblin King, Ryan, son of Jareth, his sister Princess Jasmine, and a score of rather distrustful goblins. Mother, it was as though they recognized me in some way. In fact, they repeated the phrase "He's one of them" over and over ad nauseum. I am puzzled by this and wondered if you could shed any light on the subject. At any rate, despite the goblin's obvious distrust and dislike of me, they were more than willing to comply when King Ryan assigned two of them as my round the clock "escort." Princess Jasmine calls them my "Posse", whatever that means, and I have only recently learned that their names are in fact Thur and Ogram. They are in no way the mindless, usless creatures we have been given to believe was the case with all of their race, though I have met several here who are. These two, however, as well as many others of the guard are quite well spoken and take their duty to their King quite seriously. In fact, even the less than clever among them seem to hold the King and his family in great regard, and have even treated me with a reluctant respect._

_I did not meet King Jareth or his wife until breakfast the morning of my arrival. I had been told they would not be joining us for breakfast, and so I was surprised to see them when they made their rather unorthadox entrance to the dining hall. No doubt they were more surprised by me. The king greeted me warmly, tempered with the same distrust I had become accostomed to by his children. His Queen, on the other hand, regarded me with open hostility. It is here that I must report my first important finding. The Queen is not human, as we were led to believe by Allyndriel's spy. Perhaps she meant to pass for one, why I cannot say, but without the glamor to cloud her true self she is quite obviously something else, neither human nor fae nor anything I am familiar with. When questioned, she claimed to be "Tuathan", a race I have never heard of, and the last of her kind at that. Perhaps in your experience you have come accross the word. Is she another throwback from the time of our forefathers, I wonder? Is her race also in hiding?_

_At any rate, after my encounter with the strange Queen, I had the distinct impression of a change in demeanor of all present. King Jareth left the table rather abruptly, Queen Sarah following shortly thereafter. The otheres gathered at the table made every effort to dispell the lingering unease after the encounter, but it was evident that I was not the only one confused by the incident. On an interesting side note, and one I did not realize until a few days later, while the Queen herself is not human her brother Toby is. At first I thought that perhaps his was also a glamor, but I could detect no trace of magical sheilding around him. In fact, I could find no trace of magic at all. Perhaps this information may be of use to you, though I cannot say how._

_My next peice of interesting information was garnered even before breakfast was finished. The Goblin King appeared to be taken with some sort of spell, one which the Elf Queen called "the curse." She began to explain it to me, but was stopped by the Princess. Apparently the curse represents enough of a weakness within the Baaleron family that the Princess thought it best to hide it from me. From what I was able to glean, the Goblin King's role as liason to the human's above is not as voluntary as we have been led to believe. In fact, it would appear that he has no choice in the matter, being forced as were quite painfully to respond when a child is wished away by a human. We were also misinformed as to the disposition of these children. They are not turned into goblins, but rather given over to other humans who have been granted sanctuary within the Goblin Kingdom._

_On this particular occassion, the Goblin King took his leave of us to respond to the call, transforming into an owl as he did so. In all the lore I have heard of the Baaleron's, this detail has never been discussed. Shortly after his departure the child in question was delivered into the custody of his sister. She had tried to send me away, instructing the guards to escort me to my rooms. However, I could hear quite clearly that whatever was happening was not going well, and pushed my way past the guards in hopes that I might be able to render service and thus insinuate myself into the good graces of those assembled. The child, I discovered, was a newborn and still attatched to his mother's placenta. He was clinging quite faintly to life, and while the Princess was doing an admirable job of reviving the child, I was able to use what I had learned in father's stables to assist her. And you thought my work there would degrade me! Perhaps it will warm you to know that father's insistance on it came in usefull after all._

_We were able to save the child, and this did seem to warm the Princess to me somewhat, though I must say her mood is harder to read than the weather._

_After the incident, I accompanied the Princess to the throne room, where I believe she was about to explain everything that had happened. Unfortunately, her parents arrived, and King Jareth seemed none too pleased to find his daughter alone with me. He did thank me cordially for my help, but afterwards I was promptly dismissed. I did not argue, knowing that simply doing what I was told would help me earn their trust. It was only later that I learned the Goblin King had not yet returned, and that this was a problem. It seemed that the connection to one who wished away the child had been severed abrubtly, meaning that she had died. Considering the pitiful state of the child I cannot say I am surprised. However, King Ryan should have returned quickly, but after several hours he still had not._

_The air about the castle seemed permeated with worry over the missing boy King, and I caught a glimpse of King Jareth pacing nervously on his balcony as I walked throught the garden below. Soon after a great white owl took flight, dissappearing into the waning sunset. Another few fitful hours passed, and night fell over the Goblin Kingdom, bringing with it a sickly moon that seemed as worried as the household it shone upon. Dinner was a quiet affair as everyone waited for word of the High King and his son. I was about to excuse myself to bed when a commotion in the front hallway brought everyone running. In the center of the marble hall stood the High King, his son draped listlessly in his arms. Both looked drain and Ryan especially was covered with filth and gore. Prince Toby and I hurried to take the boy King from his father before they both collapsed, and we carried him upstairs to his chambers, the others following close behind._

_The young king was delirious, mumbling under his breath about floods and heat and death everywhere. At one point he opened his pale eyes to look at me. "His name is Marcel." he breathed. "Whose?" I asked, utterly confused. "The child. Is he safe?" I nodded that he was, and then stood back as the others helped him to bed. I made my way from the room, knowing that I would now be in the way, but not before the Elf Queen thanked me for my assistance once again. I took the opportunity to relay what King Ryan had whispered to me. It seemed our foundling child now had a name._

_Afterwards King Jareth recounted how he had found his son, weak and huddled in a muddy ravine in a place of terrible devistation. The boy's magic had become so weak that he was unable to use it as a means to find him, even in a place as devoid of magic as the Aboveground. It was only after learning of a terrible storm in the human city of New Orleans, and of reports of a strange young man who had been seen pushing back the floodwaters using nothing but his mind, repairing broken levees with force of will, that he knew where to look. The devastation of the place was so great the the High King found his own powers draining, being leached by the land for more of the healing essence it had discovered in his son. King Jareth was barely able to escape the grasp of the hungry earth, with only enough power to transport them both to the outer gates of the Labyrinth, and then only after calling out to it for help. From there he was forced to carry Ryan through the Labyrinth. Fortunately, his strength began to return to him, and he was able to transport back to the castle before the moon set._

_All of this information seems very exciting. Apparently the strength afforded the Baaleron's by the Labyrinth does have its limits, and time spent Aboveground weakens them, especially if too much energy is expended. Ryan had apparently been trying to aid the people of this city, and expended great amounts of his own power in doing so, trapping himself there. If his father had not found him, the earth around the area would have kept draining him until his life force was bled dry._

_None of this story was related directly to me, of course, but as the days have passed, I have become privvy to more and more information. The family's trust in me does seem to be growing, or at least their mistrust is diminishing somewhat. King Ryan remained in his rooms for three days after his return, sleeping fitfully throughout most of it. I spent much of this time with his sister, learning what I could from her even as she struggled not to take me into her confidence. At times I truly believe she sees me as a friend, other times her demeanor towards me is as cold as the grave, and I find her duplicity frustrating. At any rate, once he awakened, my time with the Princess was cut short as she began spending more and more time aiding her brother with his convalescense. At one point, they were having a meal in the garden and I was coming to join them. I stopped short before rounding a hedge to listen to their converation. It seems that while Ryan was asleep, regaining his strength, he had many dreams involving a woman named Branwen, and another named Danu. I recalled that the Queen had called her race "the Blessed of Danu." I wonder if there is a connection? The conversation stopped abrubtly as I joined them at the table. Obviously I am not yet trusted enough to be privvy to their dreams._

_Things have since gone back to normal here, as well as I can tell. I am meeting Princess Jasmine in the ballroom later today. It seems that she and her brother will be turning seventeen in two weeks, and I have at least convinced them that they should throw a ball in honor of the occasion, and also to announce that Queen Sarah is expecting. An occasion such as this will likley draw all of Underground society, and as the Princess doesn't know how to dance, I've taken it upon myself to be her instructor. I have only two short weeks to teach her to be graceful on the dance floor, and hope in that time to build the trust between us._

_This is all the information I have now, Mother, but I hope to have more for you soon. I shall keep in touch. Give Allyndriel my love._

_Sincerely,_

_Goewin_

Goewin set the quill in its stand and sighed. There was a pain growing in his chest, one he recognized as guilt. He was torn between his love for his family, his desire to aid in regaining the family honor, and his respect and admiration for the people he had come to destroy. He had found himself wanting to tell his mother of the qualities he had found in the people around him. More than anything he had wanted to talk about Jasmine's fierce, unrelenting beauty. He had restrained himself, barely, but he could not pretend to deny these things from himself.

He summoned a small crystal, one that would carry the letter to Fanan Dubh, but hesitated to use it. Once this deed was done, it could never be undone. His betrayal of the Baaleron's would be in motion, and he knew it would set about a course of events that he would be powerless to stop, even if he wanted to. In frustration he clenched his fists tightly, so tightly that the orb broke. He watched, facinated, as blood dripped from his closed fist onto the letter below. He opened his hands to look at the gash that was still oozing dark red liquid. _Blood on my hands_, he thought, feeling his stomach lurch.

His dreadful reverie was broken by the sound of a gentle tapping at his door. Startled, he pushed the letter away and put a book on top, a volume that Jasmine had loaned him called The Lord of the Rings. "Come in!" he called, hoping his voice was devoid of the anxiety he felt. When the door opened, Jasmine stood before him. Gone was the thick leather armor he had grown accustomed to and in its place was a soft white cotton gown, simple and flowing. She smiled at the look on his face.

"Did you forget about our date?" she asked, smiling shyly?

"Our what?" Goewin asked.

Jasmine laughed, her voice soft and playful. "It's thirteen thirty." she told him. "We were supposed to meet in the ballroom at thirteen o'clock. You missed lunch and everything."

Goewin stood, shocked. Had so much time really passed? "I'm sorry, Highness." he said with a mock bow. "I suppose time slipped away from me." He had forgotten all about the gash in his hand, but Jasmine's sharp eyes caught it instantly.

"Goewin, what did you do to your hand?" She took his hand in her own without thinking, running a finger lightly over the laceration. His breath caught in his throat, both at the intimate gesture and the look of honest concern on her face when she looked up at him again.

"I, uh, I broke a glass, and cut myself while i was cleaning it up." he lied, and cursed himself for it. How would he ever be able to send that letter if he couldn't bear the thought of lying to her about a broken glass?

"Silly." she told him. "You should have magicked the glass away."

"Not all of us are as talented as you, My Lady." he said softly, and as if in response to his words, she placed her hand over his. He felt a warmth flow up his arm, not all of it caused by the power she was generating, and when he looked again the gash was gone, the blood on his hands erased as though it had never been there. He gazed in disbelief, but she tugged on his arm.

"There, you're all better now." she told him. Lets go dance.

And just like that, the spell was broken. But Goewin knew one thing for sure as he followed the lovely young princess out of his room. When he returned, he was burning the letter.


	29. Dreaming of Darkness

Disclaimer: I've forgotten this the last few chapters, so consider this retroactive. I don't own the Labyrinth.

A/N: Please pardon the lengthy pauses between chapters. I won't bore you with excuses. Thank you all for sticking with the story and for your wonderful reviews. Tess Michaela Bowie: Fear not, your efforts were not in vain. In fact, I found them so inspiring I began writing this chapter that very night. I hope you all enjoy this chapter, and as always, reviews are welcome.

* * *

Ryan felt like a small child having been sent to bed by his mother in the middle of the day for looking "worn out." The truth was he felt worn out, but not for the reasons Sarah assumed, and no amount of sleeping was likely to help.

The dreams that had plagued him since his return from Above continued unabated, worsening each time he closed his eyes. They had started benignly enough, with Ryan standing on a green hilltop gazing out over rolling green grass and rocky pastures. The place was pretty, and would have been serene if not for the nagging feeling that he was here for a reason and was meant to find something.

In the distance, two figures stood gazing at him from a across the horizon. They were too far away for him to make out any specific feature, but he knew that one was clad in an emerald gown, the other in pale midnight blue that seemed to shimmer with its own light.

He called out to them, but if they heard him they made no move to acknowledge it. Curious, he attempted to walk towards them, but the farther he walked the farther away they seemed. Finally, the one in green held up her hand, and soft voice came to him from across the distance. "….not strong enough yet…."

As he wrung his hands in frustration, this dream had faded, but it would by no means be the last. Each successive night had found him back on the hillside, running to catch up with the women who stood like sentinels in the distance. After five sleepless nights, the woman in blue was no closer than before, but he had come near enough to the on in green to see that her eyes were the color of her dress, her skin pale as cream and her hair the color of burning sunsets.

"The murdered unborn has returned." The green clad lady said softly, her voice carried across the lessened distance by a soft magical wind.

"What did you call me?" Ryan asked, his heart thudding madly in his chest.

"Son of Ma Caohail, lost soul, banished to the nether worlds by a thoughtless act." The woman replied. "Blessed of the great Queen Danu, child of thunder, savior of Upper and Under."

Ryan's mind reeled as the list of monkers grew ever longer, and none of them made any sense. "What do you mean?" he asked. "Are you talking about me?"

"I speak of the murdered unborn, and yet unborn again. His soul hovers between the worlds, and many would seek to destroy it." She answered and Ryan suddenly understood, a shiver of fear ran down his spine.

"Why, lady?" he asked fervently. "Why is the child in danger?"

"The circle which started when first his soul began is near its ending." She said cryptically. "The curse of darkness will be lifted and the Light Bringer will restore peace to both the worlds. But if his ascension is stopped once more, all will be lost, and both worlds will fall."

"Both worlds…" Ryan said softly, the words intended for himself only, but the woman in green answered him.

"The world you were born in, and the one you now call home." She told him, confirming what he feared. "Their destiny is tied to each other. Already, the world above is destroying itself. You have seen this, King of the Cursed Army, and have lifted your hand to stop it. But you cannot, nor is it your destiny to do so. Only the Light Bringer can stop the death pangs in both worlds."

His throat was dry, and there were helpless tears in his eyes. "What can I do then, Lady, if I am helpless to stop the destruction?"

Even as the words were spoken, he noticed the vision before him beginning to fade. "My time is short." The lady told him. "You are not yet strong enough to hold me here."

She continued to fade, and Ryan reached out to her, imploring her to stay. "Please, Lady, tell me what to do!" he called after her.

The vision was gone, and the dream melting away, but as Ryan awoke pale and sweating, a ghostly voice lingered in his ears.

"Protect the child."

* * *

"One, two, step, together. One, two, step, together. One, two, OUCH!" Goewin hissed, jerking his abused foot painfully out of harm's way.

"Oh, Gods, I'm sorry!" Jasmine cried, hiding her face. "I told you I'm terrible at this."

"You're not terrible." Goewin said, unable to hide his smile at her mournful tone.

"More like ghastly." Jasmine supplied.

"Well, yes, ghastly maybe." Goewin agreed, laughing when Jasmine swatted him playfully.

"A gentleman wouldn't agree with me." She said, a coy smile on her lips.

Goewin saw his opportunity and moved on it. Placing his arm around her waist in a premise of continuing the lesson, at the last second, he swooped her sideways and back, his face hovering precariously close to hers.

"Haven't you learned by now, Princess, that I am no gentleman?" He whispered, just loudly enough for her to hear over the thundering of her own heart.

Jasmine sighed, her brain momentarily shutting down as her body took over. Her eyes closed and her lips parted in what would be, unbelievably it seemed, her first kiss.

The moment was shattered, however, by the sound of angry voices and slamming doors.

"It's not fair!" **_BAM_**

"Oh really? I think I've heard that somewhere before!" **_STOMP_**

"Don't get smart, Jareth! You're being unreasonable and you know it!" **_BANG_**

"When it comes to the wellbeing of my children, there's no such thing as unreasonable!" S**_MASH_**

"Fine, then. If you won't let me fly, I'll just walk through the Labyrinth." **_CRASH_**

"Go ahead! And when you stumble head first I into the Bog I'll build you your very own castle…far away from me!" **_SLAM_**

Jasmine and Goewin quickly righted themselves as the High King and Queen made their way down the hall, arguing all the way. AS Sarah passed the doors to the ballroom, she stopped and stuck her head inside. "Your father is an arrogant pig!" She said, and continued down the hall.

"That's more than she told me about him in the first sixteen years of my life." Jasmine commented dryly.

A few seconds later, Sarah's face was replaced by Jareth's. "Your mother is a selfish, self-centered brat!" he informed them, and stalked off behind his wife.

"Ah love." Jasmine sighed sarcastically, her previous romantic notions forgotten.

"What was all that about?" Goewin asked, his face pale. He would never have believed such a heated argument was possible from the Royal couple.

Jasmine waved her hand dismissively, turning back toward the dance floor. "I would guess that mother wants to go flying and Dad things it'll hurt the baby." She said.

"Should we be worried?" Goewin asked, and clearly he already was.

"Only if you have an adjoining room." She replied, giggling when he raised his eyebrow curiously. "They fight a lot." She explained further. "It's a sign that you've become more accepted around here that they did it in front of you. But the point is, the bigger the fight, the louder they are when they make up. This was a big fight." She grinned wickedly when he blushed, the meaning of her words sinking in. As his blush deepened, the glamoured blue of his eyes faded to the natural black. He turned his face away from her hurriedly, but Jasmine caught his cheek in her cupped palm, pulling him back to face her.

"Why do you do that?" She asked him gently. "Why do you hide your eyes from me?"

Goewin swallowed dryly, searching for an answer that wouldn't be a lie. "Some people find them unnerving." He told her, and congratulated himself on his cleverness.

She brought her face closer to his, her eyes searching his own. "I think they're beautiful." She said softly, and before the sentence was properly finished his arms were around her and his lips fervently claiming her mouth.

It was almost harsh at first, like a desperate plea. But Jasmine put her arms around him, meeting his hunger, and when he knew she would not pull away he softened the kiss, gently exploring her lips with his own. His heart was racing, but his mind was strangely calm. The duality he had been feeling melted away as she yielded to his embrace, her lips parting slightly at his tongue's insistence. Weather she knew it or not, his kiss had become a promise, a solemn vow to keep this beautiful creature safe at all costs. "I'm in love with the enemy." his tortured mind managed, before conscious thought left him completely and the beauty of the moment swallowed him whole.

* * *

They continued this way for some time, all inner conflicts and outer distractions forgotten. It was only a rhythmic tapping that continued unabated that finally pushed its way into their consciousness. They pulled apart, staring at each other for a long moment, before finally turning toward the persistent sound.

To their horror, they found a bemused Goblin King staring back at them, tapping his booted foot against the marble floor.

"By all means, don't let me interrupt." He said dryly.

Jasmine and Goewin hastily detangled themselves. "Ryan." Jasmine said breathlessly. "We didn't hear you come in."

"Obviously." Ryan said simply, his gaze remaining fixed on the face of his guest. He studied the other man with all of his newly developed keen senses. The thudding of his heart, the smell of nervous sweat, none of these were unexpected, nor did they indicate malice of any kind. Satisfied for the moment he focused on the one thing that was out of place, the metallic smell of blood.

"Goewin, have you injured yourself?" he asked.

"How did you…?' he began by Ryan cut him off.

"You have blood on your tunic." Ryan supplied.

Goewin looked down and realized that there were indeed three tiny and nearly invisible splotches of blood on the black fabric of his tunic. Immediately he looked up, the obvious question poised at his lips, but Jasmine answered with a wordless tap of her nose.

"I…I cut my hand on a broken glass." He explained, repeating his earlier lie.

Ryan raised an eyebrow. "really?" he asked. "Your hands seem fine to me."

Goewin held out his unmarked hand. "Well, Jasmine healed it." He said, feeling like a child being interrogated by an angry adult.

Ryan's interest overcame his desire to seem aloof. He took Goewin's hand in his own and studied it carefully. There was indeed not a blemish on it. Looking up at his sister, he inquired "How long have you been able to heal?"

Jasmine shrugged. "Since today, I guess. I didn't know I could do it until I tried."

Ryan stared at her for a long moment. "Maybe you should try turning lead into gold." He said, and then his gaze turned to Goewin. "And maybe you should be more careful." He dropped the other man's hand abruptly and turned on his heal, taking long strides toward the door.

"You don't happen to know where mother is do you?" he called over his shoulder.

"She and Dad were arguing." Jasmine said. "She went for a walk in the Labyrinth."

Ryan turned back. "Alone?" he asked, suddenly alarmed though he knew nothing in the Labyrinth would dare harm her.

"No." Jasmine said. "Dad was right behind her. I'm sure they're well on their way to making up by now."

Ryan seemed lost in thought. "Why are you looking for her?" Jasmine asked finally. "Is something wrong?" He looked up at her, standing far to close to Goewin for his liking. When had she started trusting him, let alone kissing him? And was it the Goblin King within him that balked at the idea, or just the protective brother? He saw the way her hand sought his at the thought of trouble, and he didn't miss the way the other man readily gave it to her, along with the comfort she needed. He cared for her, obviously, but did that mean he was trustworthy? Ryan wondered if he would have trusted any man with his sister. He shook these thoughts out of his mind, deciding to worry about one thing at a time.

"No." he lied. "I just wanted to talk to her about something." With that he turned away again. There was a time when his sister would have been the first one he confided his fears in. For now, he would have to face his fears alone.

* * *

"Did you search his rooms as I asked?"

"Yes, my Lady. I found a letter. I did not read it, but I noticed that he mentioned you, and thought it might be of some use." A gnarled hand stretched out into the darkness, and the folded piece of parchment was passed.

The parchment was opened, blue eyes quickly scanning the pages, and soon shrill laughter filled the darkened room.

"You have done well, Valerent. Go back now, quickly, or you will be missed."

"Yes, my Lady." The old traitor said, bowing lightly before hastening from the room.

Allydriel continued to laugh. "Oh, dear brother, you should have sent your letter right away. Won't mother be pleased with me now?"


	30. Stone Garden

A/N: A huge thank you to everyone who has been reviewing. I wish I had time to reply to each and everyone of you, but please know that appreciate each one. Once again, I appologize for the delay, but hopefully the length will make up for it. I promise you I'm writing these as quickly as I can in the time I have. And if I don't get another chapter out before Christmas, Happy Holidays and Blessed Yule to each of you.

Disclaimer: All rights to the Labyrinth belong to Jim Henson, Terry Jones, Brian Froud, etc etc.

* * *

The clouds above the Labyrinth roiled in empathy with their mistress' mood. As Sarah stormed through the winding pathways before her, her dark hair whipping behind her in the chaotic wind she was unconsciously causing, her ire grew with the realization that the path was changing before her. Its serpentine spirals straightened themselves in anticipation of her steps, making the road before her easier and her destination arrive all the more quickly.

She pondered who could be changing the Labyrinth for her. She had shielded herself before entering, hoping not to draw Taliesin's attention. The last thing she wanted to do was discuss her current state of mind with her self appointed spectral advisor.

She was also fairly certain she wasn't causing the change herself. She may be only dimly aware of the effect she was having on the weather, but she thought she would know if her subconscious had taken up landscaping. That really only left one suspect, and a brief flash of white feathers in her peripheral vision confirmed her suspicions.

"I know you're there!" She shouted. "I didn't ask for your help!" There was no answer save the continuous straitening of the path ahead. Sarah grumbled. "If only you had been this helpful the first time around." She complained, and was certain she heard avian laughter high above.

Sarah growled, and her eyes flashed silver. She didn't want to be angry, she really didn't. And she knew it wasn't fair to Jareth. But she was tired of being rational, of pretending that everything that was happening to her was okay.

At this thought, her hand brushed softly against her belly, which was much larger than it should have been at four months pregnant. In fact, she looked more like seven. No one had been able to explain it, not even the healers that Jareth had sent for from Chead Cathair. They had poked and prodded and eventually assured her that the baby was just fine, but she had not missed the sidelong nervous glances they passed back and forth. She had consulted Taliesin, hoping there was some racial explanation, but if there was any inherent reduction in gestation time among the Tuatha, he could not remember it.

Instinctively she knew that the child was fine. He moved and kicked and jumped in all the normal ways. He responded to her voice, responded to Jareth's voice, responded to music and speech, spicy foods, cold water, even Sarah's moods. He did everything a baby of seven months gestation should do, except he was doing it at four.

And every day he advanced a little more. It wasn't so much that Sarah was frightened by this. It was just the addition of another unknown variable in an equation that was already uncypherable that she found overwhelming.

Added to this was Jareth's announcement that he would have to return to Chead Cathair tomorrow, and wouldn't be back until the Birthday Ball. It wasn't his fault and he was as unhappy about it as Sarah was. He had, after all, promised to stay until the coronation.

Sarah had done her best to hold her tongue, although everything inside her wanted to yell and scream. How could he leave her again with everything that was happening? There was a Fomorian living in the castle, for heaven's sake! Ryan had not yet fully recovered from his time Above. And at the rate her pregnancy was progressing, there was a very real possibility that the baby would come before he returned.

That, Sarah realized, was the heart of the matter. She pondered this as her path widened and she found herself facing the gate that would lead to the outlands. Sarah angrily flung her arms outward, sending the gates open with such force that their hinges groaned in protest. Beyond the walls, the sun was beginning to set, and it cast a sickly glow over the endless expanse of graves that surrounded the Goblin Kingdom. Sarah had never been this close to them before, and hadn't realized that this was where her feet were taking her until now.

One grave stood out above the others, and silently, breathlessly, she made her way towards it, her anger ebbing with each step. It towered above her, making her feel small and insignificant in its shadow, and loomed cold and garish against the auburn sky. One word was carved upon the granite, one word to identify the warrior that slumbered timelessly beneath. Not a name, or a title, just one simple, powerful world. _Brother_.

Sarah reached out and ran her fingers over the word, and was unprepared for the jolt of power that met her fingertips. She was inundated with an overwhelming sense of loss, so strong that she was shaken nearly to her bones. A sob escaped her throat unbidden, and she allowed the grief to pour over her, her shoulders shaking visibly as her sadness became more vocal. At that moment, she couldn't remember why she had been angry in the first place.

"I'm so sorry." She whispered, her voice barely audible. She didn't know what she was apologizing for, or for that mater who she was apologizing to. She didn't hear her husband phase shift behind her, didn't know he was there until she felt his warm breath on the back of her neck.

"He would have adored you." Jareth drawled, and despite the sadness that threatened to overwhelm her, she felt the familiar chills of desire creep across her neck. She turned to him, burying her face in his shoulder and reveling in the feel of his arms around her.

She wanted to see his face, but couldn't bear to see the sadness she knew would be there. "It could have been you." She said, speaking aloud the fear she didn't even know she had been feeling.

"It should have been me." He answered, his voice far away. "Seth took a blow meant for me." Although she couldn't see his face, she knew his jaw was squared in that defiant way of his. "I held him in my arms as he died." Jareth continued. "He told me, 'You were meant for greater things than this.' I believe he was talking about you."

"I hate this place." Sarah whispered. "I'm afraid of it."

"Then why did you come to this place of loss?" Jareth asked, and then his face lit up with sudden understanding. "Is that what this was about?" He hooked his finger under her chin, forcing her to face him. "That's it, isn't it? You're still afraid of losing me!"

She tried to turn her face away, but he held her firm, his gaze penetrating. "How can you leave me now, with everything that's happening?" She asked, pouting like a scorned five year old.

Jareth sighed. "I'm not leaving because I want to, Sarah. I have to go."

"Just like you had to go before?" She asked, hating that she sounded spiteful, hating the way he slumped as though defeated.

"This is not like before, Sarah." He told her. "It's only for a little while. I am the High King, now! I cannot shirk my duties."

"But what about me?" She pleaded, cursing the sound of her own voice, but unable to stop. "What if the baby comes before then? I want you here!"

"It's three weeks, Sarah." Jareth answered, fighting the urge to become angry with her. He knew she wasn't intentionally making this more difficult for him. He pressed his eyes closed momentarily and squared his shoulders, bringing his temper under control. When he opened them again, he brought his hand to rest on her swollen belly. The child inside kicked in response, bringing a smile to Jareth's lips. "I realize our little prince is in a hurry to get here." He said softly, his eyes shining, "But I think he'll wait three weeks."

Sarah was warmed by the gesture, but she refused to be swayed. "You don't know that, Jareth. We don't know anything. He could be here tomorrow."

Jareth knew she was right. Nothing about this pregnancy had been normal. He was overjoyed that he had been here thus far, but the thought of missing the last few weeks and possibly the birth itself was devastating.

He braced his hands on her shoulders and held her at arms length, looking her in the eye. "If he comes before I return, I'll teleport back. I will be here, Sarah."

"But how will you…" She began, but he cut her off, on finger over her lips.

"I'll know." He said. "And I'll be here. I promise."

"But won't you be weakened, transporting from such a distance?" Sarah asked.

Jareth laughed. "I said I would be here, I didn't say I wouldn't be tired." He could see that she was still not satisfied. "What else is on your mind, my love?"

"What if there's no one here to deliver the baby?" She asked, biting her lip. She realized that there were probably better places to be having this discussion than a cemetery. "I can't stand the thought of a goblin midwife."

Jareth could barely contain the laughter as he tried to imagine that. "Sarah, darling, the healers will stay until the time comes. Whatever made you think the goblins could deliver a baby?"

"Well, don't' they deliver their own?"

Jareth's eyebrow raised slightly at that. "There are no baby goblins, Sarah. You've been here this long and you haven't realized this?"

Sarah frowned, thinking back over the months. "I guess I took it for granted." She said. "Where do new goblins come from if there are no babies?"

"There are no new goblins, Sarah." Jareth said. "And there are no old ones. They never die, not even when you kick them out of a window." He grinned wickedly at this last, but Sarah wasn't amused, so he continued. "Every goblin you see was here when the Goblin Kingdom began."

Sarah was astounded, not just at the words, but at the nonchalance with which he had said them. Didn't he understand the significance?

"You mean, these goblins are the _first goblins_?"

"The first and only." He agreed.

Sarah paled. "But then…Jareth…these goblins aren't just the descendants of the Finnians! They are the actual cursed army of Finn Ma Caohail! They knew me when I was Branwen! Jareth, they may hold all the answers!"

Jareth couldn't believe he hadn't already thought of that. Still, he was doubtful. "I wouldn't get your hopes up, Love. You know as well as I do that most of the goblins can barely remember what they got drunk on last night."

"Yes, but there are a few that are smarter."

Jareth thought on this for a moment. While most of the goblins were useless, there were obviously some that were smart enough to run the castle, cook their food, care for wished away children. "Even still, don't you think if they had any information they would have given it to you by now?"

Sarah frowned, deep in thought, and Jareth groaned inwardly. Whatever she was plotting, he knew he probably wouldn't like it. Suddenly she looked up at him, her face beaming. "Maybe they just don't know they have information! Maybe all I have to do is ask!" She grinned broadly and took his hand, dragging him back toward the Labyrinth gates. He allowed himself to be towed, marveling at how quickly her mood had changed. Apparently, she had completely forgotten where they were and what she had been upset about. _Hormones_ he thought, rolling his eyes and unable to suppress a grin when she looked back impatiently and began to pull harder.

* * *

Goewin and Jasmine watched as Ryan left the room, and an awkward silence descended on them. They turned to face each other, and Jasmine smiled sheepishly. "Well, that was…"

"Terrifying?" Goewin supplied, and Jasmine laughed.

"I was going to say unpleasant." She told him, tilting her head in that way he found so irresistible. "Surely you're not afraid of my brother? He's harmless." She added with a dismissive wave of her hand.

Goewin's eyes widened. "Harmless? Jasmine he threatened me!"

To his chagrin, Jasmine laughed. "That? That was nothing. He was just being protective. If he had truly been angry, you would have known about it. The whole castle would have known about it."

Goewin found no comfort in this. "He could smell my blood, Jasmine." He said softly. In truth, he had been shocked by this. He had come here to gather information, and he was astounded at just how little he still knew about the Baalerons' power. Even more surprising was how little they seemed to know as well.

As if reading his thoughts Jasmine nodded her head. "Yes, he can. I don't know why I can't do that. All of his senses are sharper, like our father's." She was speaking softly, more to herself he realized than to him. She began to pace slowly around the room, her thoughts overtaking her. "But I can heal and he can't."

"Can anyone else in your family heal?" Goewin asked her, and she looked up at him sharply, as though she had forgotten he was in the room.

"No." She answered finally. "At least I don't think so. In fact, in all of the studying I've done, I've only come across one person who could heal, and she was supposed to be a myth."

"Supposed to be?" Goewin prodded, but Jasmine was lost in her own thoughts now. She had read the stories during her first weeks in the Goblin Kingdom, long before her mother's revelation of her lineage and her past identity. It had been pushed back and buried during the long months of education since, but now things began to resurface. That's why her mother's story had seemed familiar! She had read it weeks before, when she and Ryan had first arrived here and were awaiting their tutors.

She hurried from the room without explanation, leaving a confused Goewin behind and wondering if he should follow. Finally he decided it would be best to go to his rooms and prepare for supper.

* * *

Jasmine barely noticed his absence as she quickly made her way through the stone hallways to the castle library. The book she was looking for was a large and ancient tome of goblin lore. She had come across while trying to learn a little of her family history before her arrival. It had been daunting, and presented more as a series of myths than as a true history, so she had only thumbed through a couple of chapters. What little she had learned had been easily forgotten in the tidal wave of education that had descended upon her just a few weeks later.

She placed her hand on the inset crystal of the enchanted bookcase and spoke aloud, "Tuatha de Danann." Instantly the tome appeared, and she eagerly pulled it off the shelf and began to leaf through it. What had been merely a book of fairy tales filled with unfamiliar names and events was now transformed. Coupled with what her mother had told her of her lineage and her past life, the discovery was thrilling.

Jasmine fell backwards into a large wing backed leather chair, barely conscious that she had summoned a fire in the fireplace, as she continued to perused the yellowed pages of the book. Over and over the name Branwen appeared, and Jasmine was swallowed by the enormity of the things she was reading. What Sarah had told her of her memories of her past life had been scant, mainly because Sarah had yet to piece all of them together herself. Her recollections were fleeting; a string of names, their relationship to each other sometimes unknown, linked together by a series of disjointed and non contextual events. Also, as she well understood, there had been things her mother had left out of the story.

But here in her hand was history of a legendary queen, a fierce warrior for her people, a being so powerful she was beloved and feared by lower classes of Fae. And to know that this woman had been her mother filled her with a feeling so unfathomable she struggled to put a name to it. Her heart raced as she continued to read of the exploits of her mother's past incarnation. Still she had not found the reference to healing she remembered from before.

She continued to thumb through, until a name caught her eye that tugged at her memory. _Macha._ She had been Queen Branwen's younger sister, and respected and renowned for her unique ability to heal with magic. _Branwen's sister_, Jasmine thought. _Does that make her my aunt?_ It was too confusing to try to tie a relationship to her, but obviously there was some tie. It couldn't be coincidence that in so many thousands of years there were only two Fae with a healing ability.

She was completely absorbed in the book now, and wondered why in all of her questioning her mother had never thought to come to the library. It would have been too easy, she decided. Her mother seemed destined always to do things the hard way.

She flipped to another chapter, one which dealt with Finn Ma Caohail. For some reason, this was even more interesting. Her relationship to Macha and even to Branwen was a bit cloudy. However, there was no questioning her ties to Finn. He had been the first Goblin King. His portrait hung in the Gallery, where she had often stared at the face so like her father and brother, and the eyes that were her own eyes, and marveled at how strong his bloodline must have been for those features to stay true through thousands of years.

She flipped back a few chapters and found one that dealt with the Fomorians. She knew what they were, Sarah had told her that they were the enemy of Branwen's people. She also knew that Goewin was a descendent of these. But Jareth had persuaded Sarah to give him a chance to prove himself. After all, he reasoned, a lot of things had changed in so many years, perhaps the Fomorians had too.

Sarah had been skeptical, and in truth so had she at first. It seemed a strange coincidence that that a Fomorian should show up now. But that was before she gotten to know Goewin. However evil his people may have been in Branwen and Finn's time, she just couldn't see it in him. Still, the description of them in the tome chilled her to the bone. Their appearance matched Goewin perfectly, from their straight black hair to their solid black eyes. Like all Fae, they could shift appearance to suit their moods, but most preferred their natural state of darkness to any glamour.

Their appearance aside, these Fomorians were described as ruthless, vicious plotters and schemers. The whole war with the Tuathans, it seemed, was a dispute over the power to pass freely from the Underground to the Above, and the influence the Tuathans had over the primitive people there. The book graphically described the torture and murder of the humans under Branwen's care. Men, women, even small children were slaughtered in their wake. Jasmine felt her stomach lurch. She couldn't picture Goewin this way, could never see him causing such devastation. But according to the book, they could also be quite charming when it suited them. Was it all an act? Was he plotting against her family all along? Jasmine stood, cursing herself for being such a fool. She tucked the book under her arm and went in search of Ryan.

* * *

Goewin entered his chambers, instantly sensing that something was wrong. He froze in the doorway, his gaze slowing scanning the room. _Someone has been here_. With that thought, his heart began to beat wildly, and he bolted to the desk, lifting the book under which he had hidden the letter. It was gone.

He had to grasp tightly to the desk to keep his knees from buckling. _What have I done?_ He thought hard. Who could have taken it? The Guards perhaps? Or had one of the Baalerons come to rifle through his things? As quickly as the thoughts surfaced, he dismissed them. He knew who was responsible: Allyndriel's spy.

His mother had not allowed Allyndriel to reveal his identity, for fear of compromising his position. Now he wondered if the real reason was so that the spy might keep an eye on him as well. If it was the spy that took the letter, it would only be a matter of time before his mother had it, and with it all the information he had been able to gather that the spy had not.

"What have I done?" This time the phrase was spoken aloud, barely a whisper, but followed by a moan that echoed Goewin's breaking heart. She had all the information she needed to destroy them now, and he had as good as handed it to her on a silver platter.

His mind raced, and his first instinct was to saddle his horse and ride away as quickly as he could. But deep down he knew he could never live with himself if he walked away and left these people to their fate. He stood and squared his shoulders, taking a deep ragged breath. He knew what he had to do, even if it cost him his life. They had to be warned. But he couldn't go to Jasmine, he could never look her in the eye and tell her what he had done. He went back the way he came and set out in search of the Goblin King.


	31. Confessional

A/N: Two chapters in a week! There must be something wrong with me. We're building momentum, heading toward the end now. Hold on and buckle up, my friends, there are unpleasant things coming in the future. Thank you to my wonderful reviewers, and my wonderful readers.

Disclaimer: After all this time, I still don't own the Labyrinth.

* * *

Ryan was perched in the balcony of the tallest tower, lost in his own thoughts. He spun two crystals lazily across his fingertips, and while his gaze was cast across the vast expanse of his kingdom, his thoughts were turned inside. The stillness of the moment was shattered by the voice of his father.

"I could be looking in a mirror." Jareth said thoughtfully. "Or through a crack in time." Ryan smiled. He didn't have to turn around to know his father would be leaning haphazardly against the stone wall. Mirror indeed. He moved his feet wordlessly, a silent invitation for Jareth to join him in his perch.

Jareth moved beside him and the two sat in companionable silence for a moment before Ryan finally spoke. "How did you find me?" he asked.

Jareth smirked. "What makes you think I was looking for you?" Jareth countered. Ryan looked at him for the fist time, eyebrow slightly raised. "You're surprised?" Jareth asked, humor lacing his voice. "This is where I came to brood for hundreds of years before your mother was born."

It was Ryan's turn to smirk. "And what did you have to brood about way back then?" he asked, adding two more crystals to his set.

Jareth smiled. "Having to wait hundreds of years for your mother to be born, I imagine." He said, gratified when Ryan laughed. "May I ask what brought you here to brood on such a lovely night?"

Ryan shrugged. "I have a lot on my mind." He said, "And it's easier to think up here, the goblins seem afraid to follow me."

Jareth chuckled. "Yes, it's quite a drop from this window." he said, and Ryan smiled indulgently. He had yet to feel the need to toss a goblin anywhere, but then again, he had only been here a few months.

Presently Jareth returned to the conversation. "Is it the dreams that plague you?" he asked, and Ryan nodded. "Care to talk about it?" he prodded further.

Ryan looked longingly at his father. In truth, he wanted nothing more than to tell him everything, but he didn't know where to begin. He smiled sadly. "I am the Keeper of Dreams now." he said finally. "I should keep my own. At least until I understand them."

Jareth nodded and turned is gaze back to the labyrinth below. "If that is your wish." he said, though his heart ached. He could see the burden his son carried, and wished he knew how to lighten it for him. It was too much for one so young to carry alone. He sighed, wishing once again that things could have been different.

"I'm leaving for Chead Cathair within the hour." he said, after another moment of silence.

"So soon?" Ryan asked.

"The sooner I go, the sooner I can get back." Jareth answered.

"Is Toby going as well?"

Jareth nodded. And Saren will not be returning from her kingdom for several days. Will you be alright?"

"I am the King of this place." Ryan said dryly. "I think I can manage."

"I have no doubts." Jareth told him. "I have a favor to ask of you, though."

Ryan nodded. "Anything, Dad, you know that."

Jareth turned to face him. "Look after your mother for me. Take special care of her. She's…fragile."

"She's worried about the baby." Ryan stated matter-of-factly.

"As am I, truth be told." Jareth said, his words solidifying Ryan's own fears.

"I won't let anything happen to either of them, Father." Ryan vowed, perhaps a bit too solemnly for Jareth's liking. "You have my word." Then, as an afterthought, he added, "Does she know you're leaving tonight?"

"Yes." Jareth responded. "We've said our goodbyes."

"I heard that you had an argument today." Ryan said, and Jareth chuckled.

"We have an argument everyday, it seems." Jareth said.

"Is everything okay?"

"She doesn't want me to leave, she fears for the future. As I said, she's fragile. And now she has it in her head that the Goblins are the key to answering all of her questions."

"The Goblins?" Ryan asked incredulously.

Jareth sighed. "Yes." He said, running his fingers through his hair. "I managed to convince her to leave them alone for time being."

Ryan flashed a crooked grin and gave his father a sidelong glance. "I can imagine how you convinced her. Or… let me rephrase that. I don't want to imagine how you convinced her."

Jareth frowned in mock offense. "I'll have you know I merely set her to work researching names for the little one."

"Ah." Said Ryan, grin still firmly in place. "And was that before or after you said your goodbyes?" When Jareth merely growled in response Ryan decided to push it a little farther. "Honestly, Dad, I think you only take these trips to the capital to regain your strength."

Jareth's face reddened. "You're pressing your luck, boy!" he growled, but couldn't fully disguise the mirth in his voice.

Ryan continued to laugh, setting his crystals afloat in the wind. Jareth's face turned serious once more, as he placed an arm around his son's shoulder. "I'm proud of you, son." He said. "I don't say it often enough, but I truly couldn't be prouder. You and your sister are more than I ever could have asked for."

"Don't tell Jasmine that." Ryan said grinning. "Her head's too big as it is." Suddenly he was all too aware of the unconscious distance he was putting between himself and his father's praise, and felt compelled to rectify it. He let the grin drop and looked long into his father's eyes. A chill ran through him, and he the sense of foreboding that had plagued him for days now rushed at him, leaving him breathless. He was hit by the sudden desire to throw his arms around his father and beg him like a child not t go. But just as he put name to this desire, he swiftly pushed it away. He wasn't a child anymore; he would have to face his fears alone now. Still, the irrational feeling that this would be his last conversation with his father persisted.

"We're proud of you too, dad." He said finally, standing, and offered a hand to Jareth. When they stood face to face, father and son, he added. "Whatever happens, I'll always be grateful that we found each other."

Jareth's eyes brimmed with unshed tears, as he too struggled with a heavy sense of destiny. He pulled his son into a tight embrace. "As am I, Ryan." He whispered. "I love you, my boy."

"I love you too, Dad." Ryan said, struggling with his own traitorous tears.

Jareth pulled away and gazed at his son, then planted a fatherly kiss on his forehead before fading from the room.

"Goodbye, Dad." Ryan whispered.

* * *

Goewin had questioned countless goblins in his frantic search to find the Goblin King. In the end, it was neither a guard nor a house servant who helped him, but one of the stray goblins whose purpose within the castle he had never quite worked out. The fumbling, mindless creature had drooled mercilessly on Goewin's boots, and then gnawed on his arm toothlessly before finally pointing to a narrow staircase that Goewin had barely noticed before. He thanked the creature and ran up the staircase, taking them by twos.

He ran headlong into his quarry as he was descending, nearly knocking him down in the process. Ryan recovered himself and glanced down at his assailant. "Lord Goewin." He drawled. "I trust there is a reason you're in such a hurry to reach my tower?"

Goewin paled. This had seemed like a good idea in theory, but as he stared now at the Goblin "King's face, he found himself nearly speechless. "I...I…"

"Yes, Goewin, you what?" Ryan asked impatiently.

Goewin shook himself out of his stupor. "I was looking for you, sire. It is important that I speak with you."

Ryan sighed. The visit was not entirely unexpected, but he really wasn't in the mood.

"Can it wait, Goewin?" He asked. "I do have other matters to attend to.

"I'm sorry, Sire, but it cannot." Goewin said, his voice urgent.

Ryan looked the Fomorian over, and then nodded in resignation. "Very well, Lord Goewin, follow me." He turned and made his way back up the stairs, and with a careless wave of his hand produced two chairs in the anteroom before the balcony. Another wave produced a fire in a fireplace that had not been there before, and he settled into the larger of the two chairs, motioning for Goewin to join him.

Goewin stared wordlessly for a moment. He was sure the careless display of power had not been meant to add to his comfort, and he feral grin that graced the young king's face confirmed that. He swallowed hard and took the proffered seat.

He steeled his nerves to speak but it was Ryan who spoke first. "I should tell you, Goewin, if you've come to ask permission to court my sister, it's my father you should really be speaking to."

Goewin was once again dumbstruck. Gathering his senses he shook his head. "No, sire." He stammered. "I only wish that that was my purpose. I fear that when I've told you what I have to say I'll be lucky if all you do is toss me in the dungeon."

"Oubliette." Ryan corrected.

"I'm sorry?" Goewin asked, a bit perturbed with the constant interruption in his chain of though.

"No dungeons here, Goewin." Ryan explained. "Only oubliettes. They're deep nasty little holes far away in the Labyrinth where no one can hear you scream." He smiled as beads of sweat appeared on the dark man's features. He moved to the edge of his seat and continued. "Now, if you've truly done something so terrible as to merit such a fate, then I should applaud your courage in coming to me about it."

Goewin felt as though he would be sick. The King was nearly impossible to read! With one breath he was threatening, and with the nextr he offered complements. How would he ever get through this? Taking a deep breath he continued. "I have come to make a confession, sire. My motives in coming here were not as I presented them."

Ryan leaned back in his chair, his eyes narrowing. "You mean you really did come here to spy on my family." He wondered aloud, and Goewin wasn't sure if the words were meant for him or if the King was primarily talking to himself. "I'll be damned." Ryan added finally.

Goewin spoke again cautiously. "Sire, did you already know?" he asked.

"We had our suspicious from the beginning." Ryan confirmed, once again turning his attention to the Fomorian. "Given your people's history with the Tuathans, my parents thought it likely that you had come to spy once you learned the Tuathans still lived."

Goewin shook his head. "I don't wish to argue, sire, but this had nothing to do with your mother. In fact, I had never heard of the Tuathans before coming here, and I was certainly unaware of any history of hostility between our two peoples."

Ryan frowned as his heightened awareness studied the man before him for signs of falsehood. "Are you being completely honest with me, Goewin?" he asked, as he sensed there was something yet unspoken between them.

"Absolutely, my lord. But now I fear that if what you say is true, my crime may be all the more heinous."

Ryan sighed, pressing his fingertips to his eyelids. "Perhaps you better start form the beginning then, Lord Goewin."

Goewin did just that, starting with his mother's hatred of the Baalerons, and ending with the letter that had been stolen from his chambers. "I don't know who could have taken it, sire, but I fear it was my sister's spy, and my heart tells me it has already fallen into my mother's hands. I swear I didn't know about your mother or of any history between my people and hers, but I have no doubt that if it's true, it will only spur my mother on."

Ryan thought he might have an idea who had taken the letter, and his mind turned instantly to Valerent. If it was true, he vowed silently, he would see the old man hanging from the castle walls. To Goewin he said only, "May I ask, Lord Goewin, why you chose to betray your own family to bring this information to me? Is this a continuation of your scheme to gain our trust?"

"No, sire, I swear it. I would gladly give my life if I could take back the information my mother has learned.

"Perhaps that's true, Goewin." Ryan said ominously. "But you didn't answer the question."

Goewin thought for a moment, searching for the words to best describe his motivations. "I have never known anyone but my own people, Sire. I have known nothing of the world but what my mother taught me. I have never had any reason to believe any way but the way she taught me until I met you and your family."

"Go on." Ryan encouraged. It seemed strange, all of a sudden, to be acting as councilor and confessor to a man who admitted betraying his family, and who had lived so much longer than Ryan himself. Yet that was exactly the position he found himself in, and it made him feel old. Old and tired.

"Sire, you ….all of you…you are nothing like the monsters my mother described. In fact, nothing my mother ever told me makes any sense now. It's as if everything I've ever known or believed about the world has been turned upside down."

"I can certainly understand that." Ryan said softly.

"Sire?" Goewin asked.

Ryan shook his head, remembering himself. "Lord Goewin, you expect me to believe that you are prepared to turn your back on all you have ever known simply because my family is not as bad as you were led to believe"

Goewin closed his black eyes against the emotions that threatened to overtake him. "I don't' expect you to believe a single word that comes out of my thrice damned mouth." He said. "I only hope to warn you of the evil my actions may have brought to your door."

"And yet I do believe you, Goewin." Ryan said.

Goewin opened his eyes in disbelief. "You do?" he asked.

"I can feel your emotions, Goewin. I have known for a very long time that you were hiding something from me, but that feeling is gone now. You're heart is truly broken, but you have held nothing back, not even at the risk of your own life. I can think of no reason for you do this other than the ones you have given."

Goewin released a breath he didn't know he had been holding, and lowered his head. "Sire, my heart is broken. Give me whatever punishment you see fit, and I will take it willingly."

Ryan leaned back, his thoughts once again on the future. "You will do us no good dead or imprisoned." He said. "No, Goewin, if you truly want to right this wrong, we will need your services, not your head. But you must be prepared to give up all loyalty to your people."

Goewin lifted his head hopefully, and spoke without a second thought. "Anything, my lord. I am your servant."

Ryan stood. "Are you prepared to make that official?" he asked.

Goewin caught Ryan's meaning, and while he couldn't believe the honor the Young King was offering, he was quite willing to accept it. He fell to one knee before the Goblin King, head lowered humbly. "As I said, my lord, I am your servant from the moment on."

Ryan raised his right hand and a shining jewel encrusted sword appeared. It had been an erstwhile coronation gift from his father. He began to speak the words he had once heard his father utter, but then thought better of it. He was a King in his own right, and these sacred words should be of his own choosing. He opened his mouth again, and this time the words seem to come from somewhere inside.

"Lord Goewin, do you from this day on forsake your ties to your land and your people, turn your back on the life you have known, and swear yourself loyal to the Goblin Kingdom, and to me as its King?"

Goewin continued to look down, but his heart was racing. After this there would be no going back. Taking a deep breath he answered. "I do pledge myself to this land, and to you, my King."

Ryan brought the sword down, left shoulder, right, then left again. "Then rise, Sir Goewin, First Knight of the Goblin Kingdom."

Goewin stood, and not knowing what to say, he stared mutely at his new sovereign. He felt a feeling of warmth spread through him, and when he raised his hands before his eyes he found them enveloped in a golden haze. "What's happening?" he whispered.

"The kingdom is claiming you." Ryan said, as though he wasn't as surprised by this as Goewin was. "You're one of us now." As an afterthought he added, "Do you mind if I ask you one more question?"

"Of course, my king." Goewin answered, still gazing with wonder at his flesh as the amber haze subsided.

"Do you think you still would have come to me with this if you weren't in love with my sister?"

Goewin frowned, taken aback by the forthrightness of the question. "I guess we'll never know." He said finally. "But I'd like to think so." He blushed a fiery shade of crimson when he realized his mistake. To his chagrin the Goblin King laughed.

"Gotcha!" he said, and laughed harder as Goewin's blush deepened. Putting an arm companionably around Goewin's shoulder, he continued. "Come, my friend. I'm starving and I smell roast. Let's eat, and then we can discuss what must be done to keep your family from killing us all."

"Might I suggest we raise an army?" Jasmine said, appearing from the balcony.

"Princess!" Goewin exclaimed, turning to face her. "How long have you been there?"

"She arrived before you did, I'm afraid." Ryan said. "She came to warn me that she feared you were hiding something. I persuaded her to give you a chance." He winked at the two of them, and then turned back toward the staircase, flicking his fingers slightly to extinguish the fire as he did so.

Jasmine and Goewin were left behind to stare at each other, neither knowing quite what to say. They both knew things between them had changed forever, but in what way neither one was sure. Finally Jasmine rushed past Goewin to chase her brother down the stairs. "Ryan!" She called. "Ryan we need to talk about this!"

"Eat first!" Ryan called back. "Talk later."

"But Ryan..." she began, but her brother cut her off.

Turning back around to face her he pointed back up the staircase just as Goewin was making his way around the first turn. "Jasmine, I have been sulking in that tower for most of the day, and the goblins won't bring me any food up there. Now, I am going to eat before we discuss defense or by the Gods there won't be a kingdom left to defend!"

His voice was commanding, but Jasmine merely smirked. "Are you threatening to eat your kingdom, Ryan?" she asked playfully.

Ryan struggled to keep a strait face as he answered her. "Maybe." He said cryptically. "Hurry, before you find out." With that he turned and loped the rest of the way down the stairs, Jasmine laughing at his heels. Goewin watched them disappear around the next curve before he followed, shaking his head.


	32. Judas Tears

Disclaimer: I do not own the Labyrinth or Jareth or Sarah or any other characters from the movie. Original character's are all mine, though.

Author's note: More than a year since my last update. Shameful! I ask for your forgiveness, though I certainly don't deserve it. I would like to thank all of my readers who have stood by me, and all who have sent me reviews and emails asking politely and affectionately for me to update. I'm very sorry it took so long. I would like to especially thank Julia, whose very touching email spurred me on. This is dedicated to her.

* * *

It was only the three of them for dinner. Sarah had sent word that she would be eating in her room, and Valerent, it was explained, was "away" and had not yet returned. Ryan noted this information and filed it under the ever mounting pile of proof that Valerent was a traitor.

Ryan sat at the head of the table, devouring his roast and cheese with gusto. His mother wasn't here, so he was free to indulge in a little wine, yet he chose to keep his head clear. He was aware that both Goewin and Jasmine were staring at him, no doubt wondering how he could eat at a time like this. The fact was he was wondering that himself.

It was clear that neither of his companions had much of an appetite, and with good reason. He paused momentarily in his repast to smile at his sister. "The butter rolls are especially good tonight." he said.

She frowned. "Ryan..." she began, but he shook his head.

"Please, Jasmine. Just one last meal before the world falls down on us, okay?" His voice was thick with emotion, which was mirrored in the tears that fell silently from Jasmine's eyes. He took her hand in his and squeezed it encouragingly, as a silent understanding passed between them. After so much time, after so many changes, it was still the two of them against the world.

Goewin watched the exchange silently, his heart heavy with guilt. Despite the King's forgiveness, he still felt like an outsider, and a traitorous one at that. A sudden question came to mind.

"Princess," he said, clearing his throat. Jasmine tore her gaze from her brother, who had returned to his meal, and turned her attention to Goewin. She saw the sadness in his eyes and wanted so much to comfort him, yes she couldn't bring herself to forgive him as easily as Ryan had done, not yet. She had heard his words, all of them, up to and including his admission of love for her. It wasn't enough. He had lied to her, lied to all of them. And although he had taken steps to rectify his behavior, the fallout of his actions was still unknown. There would be war, she had no doubt. His sister was the very same woman who had started the last great war. It has lasted thirteen years and cost countless lives, including the uncle she regretted never having met. How many would be lost in the aftermath of Goewin's treason? How much would her misplaced trust in him cost, and could she ever really afford to trust him again?

These thoughts passed through her mind in seconds as she responded to him. "Yes, Goewin?"

"What happened that made your question me?" he asked her, and she had to think a moment to understand what he meant. She looked and Ryan and he nodded.

"Show him." her brother said around a mouthful of potatoes.

She nodded slowly, pulling a thick book out of the satchel at her side. She thumbed through until she reached a particular passage and slid the book across the table to Goewin.

He glanced at her uncertainly, then picked up the book and began to read. "'The dark ones came into the town of Udunna, bearing gifts of food and fine clothing. The people greeted them as heroes, as the winter had been long and harsh, and the harvest poor. They praised the Fomorians, saying "Surely the Danu have forsaken us, but see the dark gods have delivered us from our hunger!" A great celebration was given in honor of the enemy, and when the joy of the people was at its height, the Black Princess, the Lady Moriana, gave the order to cut them down. Old and young, men and women and suckling babe, none were spared the blade that dark day. Wives were pulled from their husbands arms and raped before both were put to the sword. Children were gathered like cattle and unborn babies torn from their mothers' wombs to be thrown into the fire. And through the screaming and stench of blood and burning flesh, the Dark Princess watched with satisfaction.'"

Goewin looked up from the tattered pages, his face blanched and his hands shaking. "This can't be real." he whispered hoarsely.

"It is." Jasmine stated, her voice resolved. "Did you catch the name of the 'Black Princess'?"

"It can't be the same." Goewin murmured. "This was thousands of years ago! My mother isn't that old."

"How do you know?" Jasmine asked flatly. "She's lied to you all your life, or so you say. She lied about your people and your history. Why wouldn't she lie about her age? Come to think of it, Goewin, how old are you?"

Goewin stared at the pages at though staring would somehow change the horrible truth contained there. He suddenly realized what Jasmine had been thinking when she went to her brother. Looking up, his voice shook as he spoke again. "Jasmine, you didn't think...I could never..." he couldn't even speak the words. He pushed the book away, trying to block its vile images from his mind. How could she even think him capable of such acts? He pushed himself from the table roughly, nearly knocking his chair backwards. As he stood, he found his knees were nearly too weak to hold him. He stumbled backward and caught himself on the edge of the table before his knees finally did give way. He slumped weakly to the floor, burying his head in his hands. He had never felt more alone, or more ashamed of who he was.

He had nearly lost himself to the overwhelming despair when suddenly he felt arms around him. Without looking up he returned the embrace, resting his head against the softness that enveloped him. The tears began to flow before he could stop them, and he cried as he had never cried before in his life. The arms around him held tighter, soft fingers stroking his hair. He couldn't remember a single time in his long life that he had ever been comforted this way,and he gave himself over to it, allowing himself to be destroyed and reborn.

His sobs began to subside, and as his senses returned he was able to hear the quiet murmuring of the voice belonging to his comforter. It was soft and gentle, yet commanding, and something about it calmed his very soul as nothing else could have. He looked up, expecting to see Jasmine, hoping to see Jasmine. Instead, he found himself lost in the High Queen's gaze. She smiled warmly at him, then looked up at her children and glared.

"What have you two done now?" she demanded.

* * *

Allyndriel knelt at her mother's feet, waiting for her reaction to the letter she had delivered. She was never sure what to expect from her mother, but at least where she was concerned, she usually could expect the worst. After what seemed like an eternity her mother spoke.

"Why is it Goewin himself has not delivered this letter?" she demanded. "Has he met some ill fate which prevents him from coming to me?"

This was the moment she had been waiting for. It could go either way from this point. She raised her eyes and met her mother's gaze. "It is no ill fate he has met mother, but a woman."

Moriana's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Explain." she spat.

"My spy has been watching more than just the King's family, mother. My brother has betrayed us. He has fallen in love with that half breed princess!"

"Nonsense!" Moriana hissed, rising menacingly from her obsidian throne. "He is merely doing as he was instructed! He is winning the trust of the girl and her family." She leaned back into the throne, as though bored with the conversation. "Besides, Allyndriel, why should I trust anything your spy has to say? According to this letter, much of his information is wrong."

Allyndriel ground her teeth together in frustration. What would it take to wrest her mother's approval away from Goewin? "He was not going to send the letter at all, Mother! If not for Valerent, it would have remained buried in his chambers!"

Moriana glared and Allyndriel felt the warning in her mother's very gaze. Still, she continued. "Face it, Mother, Goewin has betrayed us."

"Impossible!" Moriana roared, her voice shaking the very foundation of the Obsidian Palace. The guards cowered against the wall at her outburst, but Allyndriel remained steady, chin held high. Even when Moriana descended the steps of the dais to face her daughter, Allyndriel stood her ground. "I will not have another world spoken against your brother, child." Moriana hissed. "Now leave my sight!"

"Very well, mother." Allyndriel growled through clenched teeth. "but remember when Goewin stabs you in the back, remember who it was that tried to warn you!" With that she turned brusquely and left the room.

Moriana stared icily at her daughter's back, her breath heaving in anger. When the girl was out of sight she climbed back to her throne, composing herself as best she could. "Leave me!" she shouted. "And have Captain Zadis sent to me!"

The various guards and courtiers fled from the grand room, leaving it empty and hollow save for the cold queen that lounged in its center, deep in thought. After a few moments, the great doors swung open and a tall gruffly bearded man strode in. He reached the foot of the dais and knelt.

"You called for me, my queen?" he asked.

"We are alone, Zadis." Moriana purred. "There is no need for such formality.

The captain of the guard looked up, lust smoldering in his black eyes. "As you wish, my queen." he said darkly, slinking up the few steps to the base of the throne. Moriana watched with hooded lids as the dark warrior ran his hands across her ankles. Bringing them beneath her skirts, he continued his ascent, moving purposefully up the velvety skin of her thigh. When he was so near his goal he could feel the heat Moriana placed her hand over his, halting his ascent. "There will be time for such pleasures later, Zadis, for now we have work to do."

Zadis narrowed his eyes and pouted, withdrawing his hand. "What work is there that cannot wait until tomorrow?" he asked.

"I have received word from my son, Zadis. Moriana replied.

"Has he discovered a weakness that will give us control of the Labyrinth?" he asked, nuzzling her knee.

"Perhaps, but more important than that he has discovered vital information. The Tuathan's still live!"

Zadis' head snapped up at this. "What? That cannot be possible! I personally took the head off the last of them."

"Apparently you missed one." Moriana stated flatly. "Jareth's Queen claims to be the last of the Children of Danu."

"but I thought she was human?"

Moriana frowned. "It appears we were given faulty information. At any rate, this changes nothing, except to increase the urgency of our plan. We cannot afford to leave control of the gateway to the Tuathan and her halfbreed spawn.

What is your wish, my Queen?" Zadis asked.

We can no longer afford to wait until the coronation. There will be a ball in the Goblin Kingdom in a fortnight. You must prepare for an invasion. The wards around the Labyrinth will be lowered to allow the guests to arrive; it will be the perfect time to make our attack."

"So we will march in and take the Labyrinth by force?"

"Yes, and I will force Jareth to watch me kill his children, one by one, ending with the unborn child of his wretched Queen. Think of it, Zadis, we will finally be rid of the Tuathans and the line of Finn Ma Caohil. We will have the gateway and the High King's throne. We will rule both Upper and Under! My father's dream will finally be realized!"

"We shall have to be careful, my love." Zadis warned. "If the queen is Tuathan, she will surely have sensed Goewin's true identity.

Moriana sprawled lazily on her throne. "It is doubtful that she's any more aware of the history between our people than Goewin is. Still, a measure of caution may be in order."

Zadis resumed stroking the silky leg before him. I will assemble an army to march as far as the Labyrinth gates. But I will lead only a small team of assassins inside the castle."

Moriana shook her head." No, you will wait with the army. I will lead the assassins. I want to see Jareth's face when I destroy his family before his eyes.

"As you wish, my Queen." Zadis answered. He stood and turned to leave, but Moriana's hand on his wrist stopped him.

"Perhaps you're right, Zadis" the dark queen said huskily, as she stood and began to place soft kisses on the Captain's neck. "Maybe this work can wait until tomorrow."


	33. Girl Talk

Disclaimer: None of the original Labyrinth characters belong to me. Lucky for me, there is only one one of them in this chapter!

AN: I'd like to thank all my reviewers. You might be gratified to know that I have outlined almost to the end of the story. I hope to finish it before it reaches its three year anniversary. I hope you're all enjoying the tale, please review if you can.

* * *

Goewin had fallen quiet within the Queen's embrace, but she continued to console him while gazing at her children expectantly. Ryan squirmed under her intense scrutiny, and couldn't help but think of the time two years earlier when he had tried to drive his mother's car to Julie Mitchell's house and ended up ramming it into a tree. He had been unharmed, and suitably contrite, but Sarah wouldn't rest until she knew the whole story. At the time, he thought he would have rather died in the car than tell his mother he was going to serenade a girl.

This was no childhood prank, however, and lives were at stake. As much as he didn't want to upset his mother by showing her what was in the book, he knew she needed to see it; moreover, he knew she'd never leave him alone until she knew exactly why Goewin was so upset. In that regard at least, she really hadn't changed much. Besides, she was the only one who could really shed light on the information found there. Perhaps reading these pages would help unlock more of Branwen's latent memories, and provide useful information.

Still, he had been charged by the Goddess herself to protect his unborn brother, and surely bringing back memories of such atrocities could not be good for either of them. No, Ryan decided, he would stand his ground. He squared his shoulders, preparing for a fight. He was no child anymore, he was a king, and this was his castle. He would not be forced by anyone, not even his own mother, to divulge information he thought better kept to himself.

With such thoughts buoying him, he was prepared to face off against his mother. He didn't get the chance, as Jasmine dutifully handed the book to her Sarah without so much as a by-your-leave. Ryan stared at his sister, deflated, but Jasmine merely shrugged her shoulders.

Sarah released Goewin, who remained seated beside her, and took the book from her daughter's hand. As she read, Goewin slowly stood, brushing away stray tears and straitening his clothing. He felt refreshed and soothed by the High Queen's comfort, but more than a little embarrassed by his outburst. He stood fidgeting, not sure of what to do with himself now. He glanced at the Goblin King, who smirked knowingly and motioned for him to take his seat once again at the table. Goewin did so quickly, and Ryan continued to look at him with a mix of amusement and regret before finally turning his attention back to his mother. Jasmine's gaze was not as apologetic, and Goewin knew no matter what the Queen may say, it would take time to rebuild Jasmine's trust.

Sarah continued to sit cross-legged on the floor, absorbed within the pages of the book she had been handed. After a few paragraphs she looked up at Jasmine. "Where did you get this?" she asked.

Jasmine shrugged. "The library." She answered.

Amazing, Sarah thought. Why hadn't she thought of the library? So many answers to so many questions had been right there under her nose, and she had never thought to go there looking for them. As she continued to read the images became more and more familiar, and she felt her other self begin to rise to consciousness as the memories were awakened. When she finished the passage dealing with the fall of Udunna she looked up once more, and her eyes had bled to silver. When she spoke again, her voice carried the tell-tale double tone that meant Branwen was present.

"Dark days indeed, children." She sighed. The book's images played in her mind, joined with her own memory of those events. She felt a wave of nausea threaten to overtake her, but she fought it back, clenching her eyes shut to stop those images from playing over and over, to block out the screams of people she had failed to protect so long ago. "Very, very dark." She continued. "But what does any of this have to do with Goewin?"

Goewin looked up at her with heartbroken eyes. "My people did these things." He lamented.

The Queen stood. Tossing the book carelessly on the table she moved to stand beside Goewin, stroking his hair gently. "No child." She sighed; a soft breeze seemed to caress the broken Fomorian. "We are your people now, think no more of these things. This is my burden to bear, not yours."

She seemed very tired, suddenly, a fact not missed by Ryan. "Mother…" he began but a sharp look cut him off. Ryan felt suddenly like a red headed step child, and he slumped back in his chair while his mother continued to dote on his new First Knight.

"But you don't know what I've done, My Queen." Goewin said, his own pain evident in his eyes.

The Queen chuckled, and it was Branwen who answered. "I know everything, child. I know your purpose for coming, and I know of the letter. " All three sets of eyes looked at her in surprise, but she chuckled. "These walls have ears," she explained cryptically, "And a voice for those who would listen." Ryan made a mental note to set wards against invisible stone ears, and to ask his father why he'd never mentioned them.

The Queen turned her attention back to Goewin. "I know also that you never intended to harm my family. Be at peace, Goewin. There is no reason for the guilt you feel."

Goewin motioned toward the book once more. "But my mother…" he began, but a finger over his lips silenced him.

Branwen's silver eyes began to swirl darkly. "Yes…" she sighed. "The Black Princess. " She was quiet for a moment, lost in the past. When she continued her voice was thick. "I remember her well. Strange what a small thing time can be, that after all these thousands of years that name should still plague me." She closed her eyes, and memories began to overtake her, the weight of them becoming too much. She didn't feel herself falling until Goewin caught her.

Jasmine and Ryan rushed to her side, their own painful memories playing in their minds. "Call for a healer!" Jasmine shouted, but Sarah shook her head. Her eyes were green now, her voice once more her own.

"I'm fine, Jas. "She smiled. "Just tired." She tried to pull away and stand up, but the others protested.

"You need to rest." Jasmine told her.

"Then let me go so I can go to bed!" Sarah protested.

"I'll carry you." Goewin insisted, standing up to do just that.

"No." Ryan stopped him. "_I'll _carry her." Goewin had had quite enough quality time with his mother.

Sarah struggled against them all. "I can carry myself!" she insisted in a tone that would not be questioned. Goewin reluctantly set her on her feet and she brushed herself off. Smiling she turned toward the doorway. "Goodnight children." She called. When she reached the arch she stopped. "Jasmine, will you come with me? I'd like to talk to you."

Jasmine glanced at her brother, slightly afraid of having been singled out, and then hurried to her mother's side. Once they were gone, Ryan sat back to his meal, motioning for Goewin to join him.

"With your permission, sire, I think I will retire for the evening as well." The dark man said.

"Very well." Ryan acquiesced. He hated eating alone. "Tomorrow we'll begin to talk strategy."

"Of course." Goewin answered. He bowed gracefully and turned to leave.

"Goewin." Ryan called, and the other man turned back to face him. "Mother's right. You have no reason to feel guilty."

Goewin turned his gaze toward the doorway through which Jasmine and her mother had just disappeared and sighed longingly. "Perhaps not, sire. But that doesn't change the fact that I do."

Ryan knew what was on the Fomorian's mind, and he felt sorry for him. "Jasmine can hold a mean grudge." He told him, letting the formality slip. There was a time and a place for everything, and right now he felt more like a brother than a King. "But she'll get over it, man. Just give her some time."

Goewin looked back at the king. "That's the problem." He replied. "How much time have we got?" With that he made his way to his own chambers, leaving Ryan to his meal. Ryan lifted a fork full of roast to his mouth, then spat it back out.

"Naturally." He growled. "Now its cold."

* * *

Jasmine followed her mother up the staircase to the bedroom she and Jareth shared. It seemed colder in here with her father gone, Jasmine noted. "Mom, why don't you come stay in my room until Dad gets back?" she asked.

"I'm perfectly fine here, Jasmine." Sarah answered, pulling off the heavy cloak she had been wearing. She sat on the bed and patted the space next to her. "It's you I'm worried about."

"Me?" Jasmine asked, taking the seat she had been offered. "What's to worry about? I mean aside from the coming war that we probably have no hope of winning. Other than that I'm fine." To her surprise, Sarah laughed.

"That sounds like Ryan talking." Sarah said. "You're the cheerful one, remember? Stop being so gloomy."

Jasmine stared at her mother, mouth agape. "Gloomy?" she asked. "I'm not being gloomy, I'm being realistic."

Sarah waved her answer away dismissively. "You're seventeen, Jasmine. You don't know anything about reality yet." Jasmine tried to protest but Sarah cut her off. "I don't want to talk about war right now!" She insisted. "Let's talk about boys."

Jasmine blinked. Was she serious? "Ooookaaaay." Jasmine humored her. "What boys would you like to talk about?"

"You tell me." Sarah answered, much to Jasmine's consternation. "What boy do you think we should talk about?"

Jasmine narrowed her eyes. "Is this about Goewin?" she asked suspiciously. "Because if it is, you can just save it." Sarah cocked her head, watching her daughter with interest, and waited for her to continue. Just as Sarah knew she would, Jasmine stood and began to pace. "Everyone is so quick to forgive him!" Jasmine began her rant. "You and Branwen calling him 'my child' and telling him how everything is gonna be okay. And Ryan knighted him for Light's sake!" Now she wasn't just pacing, she was flailing her arms about to punctuate her sentences. Sarah remained quiet and let her daughter get her feelings off her chest. "What he did could get us all killed!" Jasmine demanded, turning to face her mother with her hands on her hips. "Have any of you even thought about that? Trusting him could hurt us all."

Sarah nodded wisely. "Is that what you're afraid of then?"

"Yes…what?" Jasmine faltered. "No..I'm not afraid."

"Yes you are." Sarah prodded. "We've all forgiven Goewin. We've all recognized that it wasn't really us he betrayed, it was the people who sent him here. He fell in love with you and it changed his entire outlook on life! It scares the hell out of you doesn't it?"

"No." Jasmine maintained, not very convincingly.

"It's okay, Jasmine. Believe it or not I know how it feels. You let your guard down, you let him get close, and you feel like he hurt you. Now you're afraid to let him in again, because you don't like getting hurt. We've all forgiven him but you can't, because it's more than just your life at stake if you trust him, its your heart."

Jasmine sighed. "Okay, let's say you're right," she caved, "What do I do about it?"

Sarah smiled. "You take the chance."

"And what if I don't want to?" Jasmine challenged.

"You don't have a choice. It's either open your heart and take the chance of getting hurt, or close it off completely and never let anyone in." Sarah stood and took her daughter in her arms. "And I know you, Jasmine. You could never let that happen, you have too much love in your heart."

Jasmine continued to protest weakly. "But I can't afford to open myself up that way, not if I'm going to run this place someday."

Sarah sighed. "That day is a long time from now, and you deserve to be happy in the meantime. Don't let fear keep that happiness from you."

Jasmine smiled. "Okay mom. I'll try." She promised. She hugged Sarah tightly, mindful of the energetic passenger that seemed too eager to come into the world. She kissed her mother's cheek, then bent to address the bump. "You calm down in there, our mother needs to get some sleep." She said.

Sarah laughed. "Goodnight, baby girl." She told her as she headed for the door. "Don't stay up too late, you need your rest too." Jasmine nodded and left the room. When the door was shut behind her he she leaned against the wall, letting the cool stone press against her skin while her mother's words danced in her mind. Everything her mother said was true; she was afraid. Her heart cried out to let Goewin back in, but her mind screamed against it. Even now she wanted to go to him and let him kiss her as he had done once before. She sighed, and angrily wiped at a tear that had escaped her traitorous eyes. Pulling herself back together, she went downstairs in search of Ryan.

* * *

Inside the room, Sarah had gotten into bed, but sleep would not come. The memories that the book had dredged up marched relentlessly through her mind, robbing her of sleep and peace. And with every answer the memories gave her, two more questions arose. Sarah found herself more confused than ever.

_Taliesin__, are you there?_ She thought.

_Of course__, My__ Queen._ Her advisor answered.

_The book that the children found spoke of Udunna. It was after Udunna that I…that Branwen killed __herself_

There was silence for a moment. _Yes._ The Labyrinth answered simply.

_Didn't you say the suicide was out of guilt? That Branwen felt guilty because Finn had not gotten there in time to save the village?_ Sarah asked.

_I told you what we assumed was the case, Sarah. Only Branwen knows for sure what her motives were._ Taliesin told her. _Why do you ask?_

_A memory._ Sarah told him. _I remember a note…..it said that Finn had been killed in the battle. She was silent for a moment. I was devastated, she continued, as the two queens melded in her mind. __And terrified.__ With Finn gone there was no one to protect me, or our child. __It was like a dream! All I could think was that I couldn't let our child be taken, that we would both be better off dead than captured by the Fomorians._She rubbed her hand absently over the child inside her.

_But Finn Ma Caohil wasn't killed in the battle, Sarah. You know that. He was the first cursed one, the first Goblin King._

_I know, but Branwen didn't know it. She killed herself because she thought he was dead, because someone told her he was dead._ Sarah bit her lip. _Someone __lied__, Taliesin. Someone wanted Branwen to kill herself. Whoever sent that note murdered her._

Before Taliesin could answer Sarah's mind was tugged by another call. It startled her at first, as the pull was unfamiliar. Then she realized someone was trying to contact her from above.

She sat up quickly, pulling a crystal from the air. The mists inside it swirled and parted showing her an image of her stepmother. "Karen!" Sarah said, shocked. Her stepmother looked haggard, and more than a little frightened. "Is everything okay?"

"Oh, Sarah, honey! It's so good to see you." Karen cried. "Sarah, we need your help!"

Sarah focused on her stepmother, all other thoughts forgotten. "What's wrong, Karen?"

Karen looked frightfully over her shoulder, and Sarah thought she heard and explosion. When she turned back there were tears in her eyes. "Sarah the whole world falling apart!"


	34. Leap of Faith

Disclaimer: Characters from the movie aren't mine, please don't sue.

AN: This is the longest chapter I've written for any story in a very long time, and the most fun I've had writing one. I hope you all enjoy it. Thank you for the reviews. I'd love some more.

* * *

When Jasmine returned to the dining room, she found Ryan slumped over, holding his head as if in pain. She ran to his side. "Ryan, what's wrong? Is it a wisher?" She pulled his head up to see his face, but his eyes were screwed tightly shut and his teeth were clenched. He tried to speak but it came out as a moan. Jasmine looked around frantically. She didn't know what to do, but she didn't want to disturb her mother, not yet. 

"Help!" she cried, just loud enough for one of the Goblins to hear. Ryan began to teeter and she held tightly to him, trying to ease him to the stone floor before he fell. A few seconds later four goblins came running through the door. She looked up at them, and noticed they seemed as terrified as she was. "I don't know what's wrong with him." She told them.

"Wishers." One of them answered. "Too many wishers!"

"He can't answers them all." Another informed her. "He being pulled apart!"

Jasmine looked at her brother mournfully. He had barely learned to control pull of one wisher, if what the goblins said was true, he must be in agony. "What do we do?" she asked.

"He gots to block them out." The first goblin answered.

"I don't think he knows how to do that." Jasmine said, and Ryan shook his head. He was curled up in a fetal position, tears streaming from his tightly clenched eyes. He looked as though he was dying. Jasmine felt helpless, and she didn't want to be alone. She looked at one of the goblins. "Go find lord Goewin, tell him I need…" she faltered, "Tell him his king needs him." The goblin ran away, and the three that were left gathered around their king, placing hands on him and offering what comfort they could give.

Damn it, Dad, why didn't you teach him how to handle this? She thought. Then she remembered. The Labyrinth! The Goblin King's power came from the Labyrinth! "Taliesin!" She called. "Old one, we need you!"

* * *

Sarah moved quickly to her feet. "Are you at home, Karen? Are you and dad both there?"

"Yes, we're home, Sarah." Karen told her. "Your father doesn't know I called you. He didn't want me to worry you."

"You did the right thing. " Sarah told her. "Hold tight, I'll be there soon."

Sarah let the crystal disappear and began dressing to travel. You can't go, Sarah. Taliesin told her.

"What do you mean, I can't go!" Sarah said aloud. "You heard her, they need me!"

Taliesin was quiet for a moment. Then he appeared before her, the spectral image of Branwen's long dead advisor. "It's beginning." He said ominously. "The balance is broken; the curse is coming full circle."

Sarah stared at him in disbelief, and then continued preparing herself for travel. "I don't know what that means, Taliesin, but I have to get to them."

"Not you." Taliesin countered. "You are not strong enough to travel between the worlds. You cannot put yourself or the child at risk. You will have to send another."

Sarah sighed. She was just about sick and tired of being protected. But she knew he was right. If Jareth were here he would never allow her to go. "Okay, I'll send Ryan." She said, but Taliesin didn't appear to be listening to her. His head was turned, as though listening to someone speak from far away. When he looked back, he seemed worried. "What's wrong now?" Sarah asked.

"Your daughter is calling me, and she sounds frightened."

* * *

Far away, in the Rainbow City, Jareth sat at a table surrounded by quarrelling kings and dignitaries. His mind was wandering, and he was troubled. Toby glanced at his brother-in-law and noticed that he seemed paler than usual, and he was squeezing his armrests so tightly Toby thought the wood might snap. "Are you alright?" he asked, leaning over to speak.

"I feel like something is wrong at home." Jareth told him.

"Do you want to leave?" Toby asked. He had had an uneasy feeling as well, and would be only to glad to leave this place.

Jareth sighed. "I can't possibly leave in the middle of this." He said regretfully. "They would call me if something was wrong, wouldn't they?"

"Of course they would." Toby reassured, although knowing how stubborn his sister and her children could be, he honestly had his doubts. Still, it seemed to put Jareth more at ease. He nodded and loosened his grip on the chair a bit, turning his attention back to the squabbling.

* * *

Jasmine cradled her brother in her arms, tears streaming down her face as she silently prayed for a way to help him. _You can help him_, a voice in her mind assured her. _You can ease his pain. You have that power_. Of course! Jasmine placed her hands on either side of her brother's head and concentrated. Taliesin appeared before her just as a soft glow began to emanate from her hands. His shaking began to subside a little, and some of his color began to return, but he was obviously still in pain.

"You can heal." The ghostly figure said softly.

"So it seems." Jasmine answered, without removing her hands or her eyes from her brother's face.

"Macha could heal." The Labyrinth returned, and this time Jasmine looked up at him curiously. There would be time for questions later, however.

"Can you help him, old one?" Jasmine asked. Her mother and Goewin rushed into the room at nearly the same moment, both breathless. Jasmine noted with grim amusement that Goewin had his sword drawn.

"What's wrong?" Goewin asked, as Sarah rushed to her son's side. Taliesin motioned for both of them to be quiet as he knelt beside the boy king. He placed his spectral hand on Ryan's face and closed his eyes.

"So many wishers." He said, and his face began to line with worry and pain. "Can you speak little one?" He asked the king.

Ryan nodded. "I…I think so." He rasped.

"How many, Ryan? Do you know?"

Ryan, never opening his eyes, hesitated for a moment. "Too many…too many to count. Hundreds…thousands." Another wave of pain moved through him and his whole body arched in agony. Jasmine renewed her concentration, using all her strength to remove the pain from his mind. Her own body began to ach with the effort, and she cried out as some of the pain she was leaching from her brother seeped into her.

Goewin sheathed his sword and knelt beside her, worry knitting his dark features. He looked up at the spectral entity whom he was seeing for the first, and then at the High Queen who was pacing worriedly."What is going on?" he asked.

"Something terrible." Sarah answered. "It must be catastrophic." She turned to Taliesin. "Can you help him?"

Taliesin nodded. "I'll need Jasmine's help." He answered. "Ryan needs to block out the wishes, all of them. I can show him how to do that. But Jasmine will have to continue sapping his pain, or he'll never be able to concentrate enough to do it."

"You can't ask her to do that!" Goewin protested. "It's hurting her!"

"She must!" Taliesin insisted, then turning to Jasmine he placed a hand on hers. "You have to be strong, Princess. If we fail your brother will go mad, and likely die."

"Oh gods!" Sarah cried, but Jasmine paid her no mind.

"I won't fail, Old One." She answered through clenched teeth. "I promise."

Sarah looked at her children, her heart tearing to pieces in her chest. Not for the first time she wondered if they would all have been better off if Jareth hadn't saved her. As if he heard her thoughts, and he likely did, Taliesin looked up at her disdainfully. "Is there anything I can do to help?" She asked.

Taliesin shook his head. "You can try not to worry." He told her. "It won't do this one any good and it will hurt the one inside you."

Sarah groaned in frustration. "Then I'm going to get my parents." She said determinedly.

"You still can't go." Taliesin responded, as though speaking to a hard headed child. "Nothing has changed."

Sarah stomped her foot. "Taliesin, something terrible is going on out there, and my parents are in the middle of it! Someone has to go."

"Well it can't be you!" He shouted, and Sarah recoiled. It was the first time she had ever heard him raise his voice. "Forgive me, My Queen, but I'm trying to save your son. Your parents will have to wait."

Sarah knew he was right, on all counts, and scolded herself for being childish. She sat in a chair watching as Taliesin continued to speak softly to Ryan, presumably helping him to navigate the traps in his mind. She felt useless, and utterly miserable. She was too pregnant to help her parents. Hell, she was too pregnant to even kneel down on the floor to comfort her children. She looked at Goewin, who was able to kneel and was doing just that, his arms around Jasmine's shoulders. She didn't seem to notice he was there; she was too caught up with helping her brother. Sarah knew Goewin was feeling useless too.

Suddenly she had an idea. "Goewin can go!"

Goewin and Taliesin looked up at her. "What?" They asked in unison.

"Goewin can go Above to save my parents."

"I don't have the power to travel Above." Goewin said.

"That power comes from the Labyrinth." Sarah told him. "Taliesin is the Labyrinth!" Too late she realized what she had done. Goewin's eyes widened and he looked at the unknown entity with renewed interest. Here was a secret his mother would give anything to know. If Sarah was wrong about the boy, and he really did mean to harm them, she had given him all the ammunition he needed. She held her breath, and prayed she had done the right thing.

Finally Goewin bowed his head in submission. "Whatever I can do for you, My Queen, I do it gladly."

Taliesin protested. "Sarah, you can't ask me to give this power to him…to a Fomorian."

Sarah looked long at Goewin, and her face turned steely, flecks of silver swirling in her eyes. "No, I ask that you give this power to one I have taken as kindred." Sarah answered, then turned her gaze to Taliesin. "I command it as well."

Taliesin sighed. "Very well, Your Majesty." He told her. In her mind he added _I hope you know what you're doing._

_So do I._ She answered.

Taliesin closed his eyes and whispered in an ancient tongue. He opened them and frowned. "It's done, Sarah. He has the ability; I trust you can show him how to use it?"

Sarah nodded and pulled Goewin to his feet. Pulling a crystal from the air she placed it in hands and began to speak hurriedly. "You have to go above to my parent's home, Goewin, I'll show you where it is." She touched her fingertips lightly to his face and let the path to her childhood home fill his mind. "Use this crystal. Think of where you're going, concentrate hard, and then drop it at your feet. I don't know what you'll find when you get there, but don't be afraid. My parent's names are Robert and Karen. This is what they look like." She passed another memory into his mind. "They may not want to come with you at first, especially dad, but you have to make them understand, can you do that?"

Goewin nodded. Whatever uncertainty he felt he swallowed it back. "I won't fail you, Queen Sarah."

Sarah grasped his forearms tightly. "I believe you, Goewin." She said solemnly. "Now go and be my champion."

Goewin nodded again and stepped back, holding the crystal in front of him. Just as he was about to drop it Sarah stopped him. "Goewin, wait!" She cried. She formed another crystal and placed it in his empty hand. "I can't believe I almost forgot. You'll need that one to get back." Goewin frowned at her and she smiled sheepishly.

"Anything else before I leave?" he asked her.

She shook her head. "No, I'm pretty sure that's it." She said.

Goewin narrowed his eyes, but didn't hesitate to drop the crystal. A swirl of magic enveloped him and he disappeared.

When he was gone Jasmine broke her concentration just long enough to speak to her mother. "What if you're wrong about him?" She asked.

"I'm not." Sarah stated.

"How can you be so sure?" Jasmine said, closing her eyes again as another wave of pain ebbed through her from her brother's mind.

"I'm not sure." Sarah conceded. "But I took a leap of faith."

"Then I hope you don't fall" Jasmine said, her mind focusing back on the healing.

_So do I_. Sarah thought, _For both our sakes_.

* * *

Goewin arrived at his destination with a loud thump, stumbling and nearly falling as the reentry caught him off guard. He righted himself on a bookcase, and then retched as a wave of nausea overtook him. He wondered why on earth his mother would start a war just to be able to experience that. When he felt he had his legs back under him he began to move about, taking in his surroundings. This place was unlike any he had ever seen. He moved past a window and glanced outside. Smoke filled the air and in the distance and entire city appeared to be burning. People were screaming, some bloodied and burned, running in search of shelter. 

He knew it mustn't always be this way, that what he was seeing outside was the horror the Queen had feared. He glanced around the dwelling. It seemed to be in fairly good shape, Jasmine's grandparents should be safe for the moment. He walked into the next room, his boots crunching on broken glass. One large window here was shattered, broken inward. Either there had been an explosion right outside, or someone had broken in.

He stood still, listening intently. He heard voices somewhere above him. With stealth born of years of intense training he made his way silently up the stairs. He followed the sound of the voices to a large bedchamber. Inside were four people, two he recognized as Robert and Karen, and two strangers who were holding them at gunpoint. He ducked behind the doorframe, watching the scene play out.

"Please, take whatever you want." Robert was pleading. "We have jewelry and money in a safe in the closet. I'll open it for you. You can have all of it, just don't hurt us."

The men laughed, an ugly phlegmy sound. One of them grabbed Karen's arm and pulled her into his grasp. When Robert tried to stop him his accomplice hit him hard across the face with the butt of his gun. "Oh, we'll take yer stuff, all right." The first one sneered, raising his gun to Karen's head. "Then we'll take yer pretty little wife in front of ya. After that George over there might just take you before we off ya both." The other man, George, snorted at this remark. Placing his hand to his groin he gestured crudely at Robert, then howled with laughter when Robert recoiled.

Goewin sneered in disgust; he had seen enough. He drew his sword and waited for his opening. If he attacked now there was too much chance of one of Sarah's parents being injured. He watched as George pushed Robert toward the closet, presumably to open the safe. A few minutes later he called out "Hey Bobby, you gotta see this!"

Bobby loosened his grip on Karen. "Stay put." He told her menacingly, and pushed his way into the closet. When Karen was alone, Goewin whistled softly to get her attention. She looked around, trying to find the source of the sound. He whistled again, slightly louder. She turned toward the door and gasped when she noticed him there. He put his finger to his lips, commanding her to be silent, then motioned for her to come to him. He was only slightly surprised when she took a step backward instead. He must have made a menacing figure, dark as he was and dressed in black armor with his sword drawn, especially in this dark house. He had to find a way to make her trust him.

He suddenly remembered the crystal. He reached into his overcoat and pulled it out. He was gratified to see Karen's eyes light up at the sight of it. She hurried to his side. "Sarah sent you, didn't she?" Karen whispered frantically.

"Yes she did." Goewin answered. "I'm going to get your husband now. You may want to stay where you can't see." He raised the sword to emphasize his meaning. Karen swallowed and nodded, then leaned against the wall with her eyes screwed shut and her arms over her ears.

Goewin crept into the room, silently making his way to the closet door. He pressed himself against the wall, waiting. Robert was the first to exit, stumbling to the ground as one of the gunmen shoved him. He turned around quickly, and noticed Goewin standing there. His eyes widened but Goewin shook his head, imploring him to be silent. The next to exit was Bobby. He stopped with his back to the door, blocking George's exit. "Hey!" he shouted. "Where's the bitch?"

Goewin growled, and raised his sword. Bobby turned in time to see the sword swing down, and that was the last thing he ever saw, as his head was removed cleanly from his body. Robert gasped and scuttled across the floor as the erstwhile bandit's head rolled and came to rest in front of him, lifeless eyes staring out at him.

Goewin lunged and turned, awaiting the other. George had been gathering up the booty from the safe and only heard the commotion. He ran out of the closet, gun drawn, but stopped short when he saw the headless body of his partner on the floor. He looked up at Robert, and then spun around as he followed Robert's frightened gaze. Goewin had let all glamour fade and now stood before him as he truly was, pale skin etched in black, with eyes the color of coal and a dark aura that surrounded him and seemed to reach out toward his prey, ebbing and flowing with each heavy breath. He curled his lips back in a menacing snarl. "I pass judgment on you in the name of Queen Sarah." He growled, and the room seemed to grow darker.

George screamed and raised his gun up in defense. He fired off two shots before the sword lashed out, and his head hit the floor with a sickening thud, followed a short time later by his body.

Goewin lowered his sword and stumbled back against the wall. Robert continued to stare at him in sheer terror, but Karen rushed to his side. "You're hurt!" She cried.

Goewin waved her off. "I'm fine." He said, unconvincingly.

"Nonsense." Karen scolded. "Robert, don't just sit there, go find some alcohol and bandages for his wounds." When Robert didn't move she stood up, stepping over both headless bodies to stand in front of him. "For God's sake, Robert Williams, this man just saved your life! Now move!"

Robert looked past her the man who had saved them both. "Who are you?" He asked, then added, "What are you?"

"My name is Goewin; I am First Knight of the Goblin Realm. I was sworn by your daughter, the High Queen Sarah to rescue and bring you back safely to the Goblin Kingdom." Goewin answered, pulling himself up painfully from the floor. He was definitely hurt, but he wouldn't know how badly until he could remove his overcoat.

"Oh no." Robert shook his head. "I'm not leaving. This is my world; I don't belong in fairy tale land."

"Robert, are you insane?" Karen cried. Motioning at the window and the smoking rubble beyond she continued. "Look around you! We can't stay here!" As if to punctuate the statement a loud explosion rocked the house, and all three covered their heads as parts of the ceiling caved in around them.

"I don't care." Robert said emphatically. "I'm not going anywhere. Not with him." He motioned toward Goewin. "Not with anyone. I will stay and defend my home."

Goewin looked up at the obstinate human, and almost had to laugh. This is where Jasmine and her mother got it from. He took a step forward and wobbled. He was getting dizzy, and it was hard to breathe. "I'd love to debate this with you, sir." He rasped, "But I'm afraid I'm running out of time. " He reached out and unceremoniously grabbed Robert by the arm. He looped his other arm around Karen's waist and dropped the crystal. After that everything was dark.


	35. Blood

A/N Well hello there. It has been a very very long time since I updated this story. I really didn't think I ever would. I had a death in my family, you see, and lost my will to live, let alone write, for a good long time. I honestly didn't think I would ever write again, it seemed my muse had died as well. Then a couple of days ago i sat down and read through the story again, and thought what a shame it would be if it was never finished. So, without making any promises, I have set out to finish it. If any of you are still paying attention to this after so long a time, I applaud both your patience and dedication, and am humbled by it. I would like to thank everyone who has left me reviews during my hiatus, they were all read and deeply appreciated. I appologize in advance for both the brevity of this chapter and any errors I might have missed. Please bear with me as I'm having to learn this process all over.

Disclaimer: You'd think after all this time I would own it by now. Alas, I do not.

Chapter 35

Sarah paced the marble floor, absently chewing at her thumbnail, with worry etched across her face. She stopped occasionally to gaze upon her children, not daring to speak and interrupt their concentration. Taliesin's shade stood nearby, still and silent, but she new he was communing with her son. Ryan seemed to be in less pain, but whether that was because Taliesin's instructions were helping, or because Jasmine was merely taking it all into her self Sarah didn't know.

In addition to worrying about her children, she was keenly aware that Goewin had been gone far longer than necessary to retrieve her parents from above. She worried that something had happened to them, that they had run into trouble, and yes, even that her trust in him at been misplaced. She barely realized she was pacing again when she heard her daughter moan softly. Looking up she saw Jasmine had removed her hands from Ryan's temples and now leaned against a pillar with her knees drawn up to her chest, cradling her head in her hands.

A quick glance at Ryan showed his face even more peaceful than before, and with relief she realized Taliesin's blocking technique must be working, and Jasmine's assistance was no longer needed. She turned her attention to her daughter, kneeling at her side and placing a protective embrace around her.

"Are you okay, baby?" she asked fervently, "are you hurt?" Jasmine looked up and gave her mother a wan smile. Her face was drawn and pale and dark circles ringed her eyes. "I'm okay." she said weakly. "Just tired." Suddenly her eyes widened and she looked about in a panic. Where's Ryan?" she demanded, "Is he okay."

Sarah calmed her daughter, stroking her ebony locks with practiced fingers. "He's fine, darling, Ryan is just fine thanks to you." She felt a swell of pride for her daughter. "You saved his life you know."

Jasmine yawned, relaxing against her mothers shoulder. "Ye, I did." she said sleepily. Sarah chuckled and looked over at her son. He too looked tired, but with each passing moment, he looked more refreshed and rejuvenated. "Come on." she said finally, rising to her feet and hauling her daughter up with her. "Ryan's in good hands, lets get you to bed."

Jasmine put up no resistance as her mother led her towards the center of the room. Sarah plucked a crystal from the air, preparing to transport them both to Jasmine's bedroom when the crackle of magic filled the air.

Jasmine perked up considerably. "Goewin!" she breathed. She could hardly believe she had all but forgotten about his trip above ground. Sarah hadn't missed the tone in her daughter's voice, and silently prayed that when the dark fae arrived she would be too tired to be stubborn. The smile that touched her lips was frozen by a sudden feeling of foreboding that washed over her like a sickening wave. Something was wrong, very wrong, and somehow she could feel it.

As the charge in the air became more pronounced, three figures materialized in front of them. Jasmine, her weakness forgotten, ran towards the figures that appeared through the ether, Sarah right behind her. The looks on her grandparents faces were almost comical, but she took pity on them, remembering the first time she had teleported. Goewin, too, looked the worse for ware, his pale face somehow almost luminescent.

Judging by the grip Goewin had on Robert, the Baaleron women surmised correctly that he had not come to the underground willingly. As they fully materialized, Goewin loosened his grip on Robert and Karen, causing them to stumble forward awkwardly. Robert immediately began flustering, but was silenced by his daughter's embrace.

Sarah gathered her parents to her and began looking them both over. "Is everything okay?" she asked. Robert tried again to complain about his ill treatment, but was cut off once more, this time by his wife. "We're fine, dear, thanks to you." she told her step daughter. "you sent your friend just in the nick of time." Robert begrudgingly nodded his head in agreement. "Though I'm not so sure all the decapitation was strictly necessary." he added. Sarah raised an inquisitive eyebrow and glanced up at Goewin, noticing now the paleness that her daughter had seen. Again the feeling of foreboding washed over her as she watched the tall champion stand silently and stoically, his back against the wall.

Jasmine had begun helping to steady her grandparents, who still looked a bit woozy. She helped her grandmother to a chair, looking down at her hands in shock when she saw traces of blood. Immediately she looked back at her grandmother. "Grandma, your blouse is covered in blood!" she gasped, beginning to look her grandmother over for injuries once again, but Karen brushed her off.

"Its not mine, its not mine." Karen said absently. Then as if the fog in her mind had suddenly cleared she grasped Jasmine's hands. "Your friend." she she said. "He was hurt. I think he might have been shot."

Jasmine spun around, looking at the man she loved. Again she took note of how pale he was , but this time the feeling of foreboding that had taken over Sarah began to snake its way up her spine as well. Goewin was still standing, gazing blankly at nothing in particular, but as if feeling Jasmine's eyes upon him he slowly turned his head to look at her.

When their eyes met a cold chill touched Jasmine, raising the hairs on the nape of her neck and making her blood run cold. She was seized with an unnameable and unbearable fear. "Goewin?" she asked tentatively, the same fear coloring her voice. He managed a weak smile before sliding down the wall to his knees, leaving a smear of dark blood to clash against the alabaster walls.

The sight of the blood stirred the Princess and her mother into action, and they were instantly at his side. "What happened?" Sarah asked her parents, her eyes never leaving her young champion. He was sweating now, and his breathing was ragged and labored. Karen hurried to join them at his side. "He saved us from looters, they were going to kill us." she said, her memory of the events finally returning. "But one of them took a couple of shots, and I think he was hit."

Jasmine heard her grandmother's words but barely registered them. The icy fear that gripped her had found its way to her heart, and her breathing became almost as ragged as Goewin's. She reached out to touch him, the fear making her hesitate, when she finally did she was stunned at how cold he was. "Goewin, baby please talk to me." she cried, her hands fumbling with the buttons of his waistcoat. She almost missed the smile that touched his pale lips when she called him "baby."

He reached a trembling hand toward her and stilled her arm, and with his other hand he cupped her small face. "My princess," he said, his voice barely more than a whisper. "I would have loved you through eternity." With this his hands fell to to his sides and his eyes closed.

"No!" Jasmine shouted, shaking him by the shoulders. "Don't you talk like that, dammit! Don't you dare!" She shook with anger, frustration, and guilt. Tears spilled down her shimmering cheeks and her mismatched eyes flashed in desperation.

Sarah had taken over where Jasmine had left off, unfastening the many layers of dark clothing looking for the source of the blood. When finally she had his chest exposed her own blood drained from her face. Two gaping bullet wounds glared angrily from the left side of his body, and with every ragged breath the young man took more blood gushed forth. For just a second, her mind went numb, frozen by a feeling of futility. "Gods." she whispered, holding back a sob.

Then, as quickly as the paralyzing numbness came it left, and her tear filled eyes flashed to silver. Branwen had more experience with battle wounds, and she took over. "Jasmine," she said sharply, snapping the girl out of her own numbness. "Can you do anything for him?" The Princess looked up at her mother with tear filled eyes and shook her head. "I'm trying" she cried desperately. "There's nothing left. There's nothing ." She began to sob, but Sarah paid her no mind.

"Dad, give me your shirt!" she shouted, and her father for once obeyed without question. He too felt helpless and desperate. She balled the garment up and pressed it against the gushing wound, attempting to stem the flow of blood. A pool of the thick gore had begun to form around them, and she feared the situation had already gotten out of hand. She took Jasmines trembling hands and placed them against the makeshift bandage. "Hold tight here." She commanded, and Jasmine obeyed, her body racked with helpless sobs.

Sarah felt pity for her daughter, but there was no time for comfort. "Beloch!" she demanded, "Bring the healers, and hurry. You others, get as many blankets as you can carry, and boil some water. Immediately there was a scurry of activity, as goblins of all shapes and sizes ran into each other to fulfill the High Queen's decree.

Goewin's breathing had become even more labored, and Sarah feared the healers wouldn't arrive in time. The bandage was doing little to stem the blood flow, as it seeped through and pooled between Jasmine's trembling finger. She looked up at her mother with shimmering mismatched eyes, looking for all the world like a little child. "He's dying, Mama." she cried.

Her edicts issued, Sarah now bent to comfort her daughter. " It's okay, baby." she said, in the most motherly voice she could muster. "the healers will be here soon, they'll know what to do." She closed her eyes and prayed that that was true.

As if on cue, the healers arrived, followed by a bevy of goblins carting blankets, pots of steaming water, and satchels presumably belonging to the two fae women. They quickly spread some blankets on the floor, and with Robert's help they managed to lay the large Fomorian down. They quickly removed the rest of his clothing, pulling up yet another blanket so that his modesty was preserved.

This task completed, the two healers knelt beside him, setting to work assessing his wounds. They both tsk'd at the damage, but said nothing else regarding his condition. They worked wordlessly, seeming to know what the other was thinking. Sarah for the first time felt a sense of relief, believing that perhaps there was hope after all. Once again she began her worried pacing, helplessly watching as yet another precious life hung in the balance. Jasmine knelt dutifully at Goewin's side, holding his nearly lifeless hand to her breast and absently brushing back the dark hair from his deathly pale face, all the while ignoring the tears that streamed unabated down her cheeks and onto his icy flesh.

Robert and Karen stood back, all but forgotten, and watched in horror at the events unfolding before them. They still had no idea who this young man was, but it was clear he was beloved by Sarah and Jasmine, and he had risked his life to rescue them. They barely knew his name, but they both prayed silently to whatever gods might be listening that the stranger would not die for them as well.

And in the corner of the room, forgotten and unnoticed, The Goblin King and his spectral adviser remained oblivious to the drama that surrounded them, caught up as they were in a small drama of their own.


End file.
